Museveni tasks EAC judges on better access to justice

President Museveni has urged the magistrates and judges in the East African Community (EAC) to have harmonised administration of justice. 
He  explained that the people are the same because they are separated by artificial colonial boundaries that were created by unpatriotic masters.

“Our social values are justice needs. The needs remain the same. How to integrate economically and politically. We also need to harmonise our judicial system. The judiciaries in the East African partner states need to apply common standards, the best judicial practices across the region,”President Museveni said in his remarks read out for him by his vice, Ms Jessica Alupo, yesterday in Kampala.
This was during the ongoing East African Magistrates and Judges Association conference in Kampala that has drawn hundreds of judicial officers from the EAC including Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Burundi.
The President said the wananchi have decried unfriendly work of courts including unclear procedures and unpleasant experiences such as long adjournments, delayed judgements and corruption tendencies.

He  also cited high costs of litigation, cumbersome court procedures, court summons and judgments written in foreign languages, discrimination against women, people living with disabilities, and the poor, delayed execution of court orders, and people losing cases simply because of lack of legal knowledge even when it’s clear that they have a genuine claim.
Mr Museveni said: “This is true in many other African countries and it’s certain that victims of such malpractices will have no trust in the courts.” 
 
He added: “Judiciaries in East Africa partner states should apply common standards and best judicial practices; enhancing justice, enhancing efficiency and giving timely decisions.”
The President also in his remarks, reminded the judicial officers in attendance about their core mandate, which is the administration of justice to the people.

“The people you serve have entrusted you with this mandate. So as you deliberate during this conference, you come up with the best practices of how to enhance access to justice.” he said.
Speaking at the same conference, Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo, the host of the conference, said member states are confronted with many bottlenecks in the administration of justice.
He cited case backlog, inadequate budgetary allocations, limited personnel, perceived and real cases of corruption, and cumbersome trial procedures, among others.

“We are, therefore, here to share our experiences in our respective jurisdictions. The most important thing to agree on is the best practices. There is, therefore, need to think outside the box,” he said.
Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Norbert Mao cautioned the hundreds of judicial officers in attendance to be more careful as they administer justice in the era of social media.

“Sometimes what you say is distorted, judges are being attacked on social media. The environment in which you operate today is very difficult and you need to discuss how to dispense justice in a glass,” minister Mao said, adding: “We no longer have the privilege that your ancestors had to do justice behind closed doors. We expect that you will be able to discuss that”.
The week-long conference is running under the theme “Harmonising the best practices of judiciaries in East Africa”.

The East African Magistrates and Judges Association is a forum for  magistrates and judges to share their experiences on how best to dispense justice and uphold the rule of law in their respective member countries.
The eight EAC membe states are Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Somalia, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Somalia, which was recently admitted to the regional bloc.