Concern over rising cases of juvenile offender
Suspected juvenile offenders line up before Uganda Human Rights Commission officials at Arua main prison last week. PHOTO BY CLEMENT ALUMA
What you need to know:
- Mr Luke Owoyesigyire, said in most cases, whenever they investigate cases of theft and robbery involving domestic workers, they find that the suspects connive with other people in committing these crimes
The police have expressed concern over rising cases of domestic workers stealing property of their employers.
Speaking at a function to hand over a batch of 400 chicken that juveniles at Naguru Remand Home in Kampala have been rearing as part of their rehabilitation programme, Ms Mary Kyomugisha, the facility probation and welfare officer, told members of the Rotary Club of Upper Kololo that lately, the remand home has been receiving a high number of underage househelps charged with theft of their masters’ property.
“When you interview the children, you find out that they are victims of child trafficking from upcountry, and they end up involving themselves in criminal activities as they look for survival,” Ms Kyomugisha said.
She added: “The people who traffic the children should be held accountable. Children should be given a second chance.”
She said currently, the remand home has nine girls charged with theft and 176 boys involved in theft and robbery,” she said.
In an interview yesterday, the Kampala Metropolitan Police deputy spokesperson, Mr Luke Owoyesigyire, said in most cases, whenever they investigate cases of theft and robbery involving domestic workers, they find that the suspects connive with other people in committing these crimes.
“There is a possibility that they connive with thugs. We discourage people from hiring housemaids below the age of 18 because when they commit a crime, we shall not only arrest them but also their employers such that they tell us how they got children to work for them,” he said.
Mr Owoyesigyire added that they have also registered cases where underage househelps have been sexually abused in their employers’ homes.
Ms Joyce Odoki Sadori, the president of Rotary Club of Upper Kololo, said the club provides the remand home with chicks which the inmates rear as a way of developing their poultry rearing skills. The club later buys the birds from the remand home and the proceeds are reinvested in the facility.
The club also sponsors other skills programmes, including piggery and tailoring.
Ms Sadori said so far, 400 inmates have benefited from the programme.
Mr Steven Mwanje, the past Rotary District 9213 governor, who was the chief guest at yesterday’s function, thanked the club members for initiating the project, saying it teaches everybody that people can be transformed.
