2/9/2013
Ninsiima Gideon has worked as a
legal advisor for previous refugee camps around Uganda and has now been
recruited by AAH to come and provide his services in Kyangwali. Being a legal
advisor in a refugee camps means that Ninsiima must go into the villages and
assist with legal cases ranging from a number of issues. Since the camp is
located within Uganda, Ugandan law is used to advise and rule over these cases
and disputes by the local magistrate here in Kyangwali. It is not Ninsiima’s
job to defend anyone in court but instead to guide each party involved in the dispute to
a peaceful solution for the conflict at hand. If anything, Ninsiima is more of a
peacekeeper.
Aside from finding a peaceful
solution to the conflict, Ninsiima must also look after the human rights of a convicted person. If the person convicted is given bail, he sees if the
convict’s condition is being violated; he ensures that the convict has proper treatment, is
being given food and shelter, and is not being abused. However, not only does
Ninsiima have to mind the convict’s rights while they are incarcerated, but he also has
to look at the waves that the convict created which will have rippled far
beyond himself. Ninsiima will also have to look after the convict’s family and
observe if there is anyone else who may have been affected by this situation. For
example, if someone convicted is sent off to prison and they are the main breadwinner for the family, then Ninsiima must see how the family will survive in
the convict’s absence and also if they are being treated fairly back in their
community. Ninsiima also tries to protect the family and make sure that they
do not suffer from this incident.
In order for Ninsiima to do his
job, he must find out from the police about the disputes in the villages, bring
these cases to the OPM (Office of the Prime Minister) and UNHCR to ask for
counsel and assistance, work with doctors if medical proof is necessary to help
build a case, and then bring it before the Magistrate so that they can make a ruling. He goes
to the site of the crime and speaks with family members, neighbors, witnesses, accusers, and anyone else involved in the case somehow to find out if the person who was
convicted can be reintegrated back into the society comfortably, and try to
resolve the issue.
Usually one or two people from
the village will go and stand for and against the accused, and see if they can
try to settle the dispute. The convicted person can agree to a fine to pay
damages, transportation costs, or medical bills. These cases can be over
anything; land disputes, drunken brawls, assault, murder, or rape, but anything of
a more serious nature then follows the usual court proceedings. The accused person
is tried, convicted, and then sentenced using Ugandan law. Since this is
Ugandan law, only incidents that happen within Uganda may be taken to court. However, what is unfortunate is that many conflicts that Ninsiima comes across originate back from when
the refugees were still in the Congo.
Any job position inside a refugee camp
is not without its stress. Transportation is a huge issue throughout the camp
and it is difficult for someone like Ninsiima to do his duties if he cannot go
to, or bring people from a village to help resolve conflicts. However, transportation is not the biggest issue that Ninsiima faces when working. “Cases
take an emotional toll on you in different ways”, Ninsiima explained while we
were sitting down at lunch. There are some cases which he cannot help but get
emotionally invested in. When he sees a great injustice but the law cannot help
because the accused may have run off or the case may be void in Uganda due to
the crime being committed across national borders, it starts to toy with his
emotions and make his job even more difficult.
In many cases, you can get people
from the village to come to court, but sometimes they disappear and run back to
the Congo or somewhere else to avoid being tried if they know it was a serious
crime. There are some who also run if they do not want to go before the court and
pay the damages or any fees that they may be ordered to. If this happens, then Ninsiima has to inform OPM and the police so that they can make a
report and attempt to find the people, or if they do return, then the case will not be dropped
and justice will hopefully be served. OPM and UNHCR need to be kept in the loop
of the proceedings of the cases in order to assist with the process and help carry
the burden and enforcement of these cases as well.
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