By Fredrick Egonda-Ntende
On Thursday 17th September, Rtd Court of Appeal/Constitutional Court Judge Fredrick Egonda-Ntende presided over the opening session of the Uganda Law Society-organized Digital Festival 2026. And in his submission, the much-revered Judge elaborated on how ULS can leverage technology to engender its statutory mandate, to amplify the fight against torture acts which are punishable under the ICC Statute-enabled international jurisdiction.
He made it clear that the ICC, in whose founding Uganda actively participated, is mandated to investigate and sanction perpetrators of crimes with international dimension such as acts of torture which have been rampant in Uganda over the past few years.
Without singling out any Ugandan leader for being notorious when it comes to human rights violations, Fredrick Egonda-Ntende made it clear that the law on limitation of actions doesn’t apply to criminal matters and implies that it will be in order for the ICC to get involved since the Ugandan state hasn’t demonstrated any appetite to punish perpetrators who commit acts of torture since the days of Nalufenya.
He reminded the ULS leadership and membership that technological capabilities that are available to humanity today make it easy and possible for them to call for the attention of ICC to the bad torture and human rights situation prevalent in contemporary Uganda, without having to incur much cost.
That it’s possible for ULS to be there for the torture-aggrieved people of Uganda by keeping the ICC engaged with the situation in the country without requiring much budget and also without breaking any law.
The presentation by Uganda’s very objective-minded Judge, who gratefully last week survived a terrible accident on the Kampala-Entebbe Expressway and who remains one of the country’s popular jurists even in retirement, has since made lawyers in the ULS universe to feel energized and motivated to keep pushing back against the state actors’ excesses.
We hereunder reproduce Justice Fredrick Egonda-Ntende’s original submission as was delivered by himself at the event. The publication of the same has expressly been authorized by the retired Judge himself:
VERBATTIM:
Digital Democracy: Advancing Access to Justice, Innovation, and Ethical Governance through Technology
By Fredrick Egonda-Ntende, 17th September 2026
Introduction
I thank you for the invitation to me to be your chief guest at the opening of this Digital Transformation Festival. I am humbled to be invited. Who am I to be considered worthy? Just a retired a judge finding his way in this new season of life!
I would like to briefly discuss how appropriate your theme is to the current times we are going through. The last 30 years have seen a revolutionary change that probably has little comparison with previous changes that included the ability to light a fire, the discovery of the steam engine and then the discovery of electricity.
The evolving combination of information and communication technologies have changed and continue to change the way we work, play, and relate to each other and the world. Nevertheless, the values we hold dear anchored in the dignity of the person and human life continue to be sacred.
You will recall that among the objectives of the ULS are under the Uganda Law Society Act are:
3 (c) to represent, protect and assist members of the legal profession in Uganda as regards conditions of practice and otherwise;
3 (d) to protect and assist the public in Uganda in all matters touching, ancillary or incidental to the law;
You are under a duty to protect and assist the public in Uganda in all matters touching, ancillary or incidental to the law. This is a very wide-ranging obligation.
Torture under International Law and Municipal Law
You will recall that about a decade or so ago, Nalufenya Police Station had become infamous with wide ranging allegations of torture of people that fell in the hands of those running the same. It became so infamous and notorious that at some point when there was a change in the Police Leadership one of the first acts that the new leadership undertook was to terminate the hold that the infamous unit had on Nalufenya police station. There was a huge sigh of relief from the public. However, I am not too sure that there was accountability for the acts perpetrated at that the police station. It is possible that there are people who were convicted in courts of law because of the forcible extraction of confession statements.
This was not the first time in our history as nation that we had such a dark and unfortunate period in the life of our nation and our people. There were the infamous Nakasero dungeons in the Idi Amin regime. Nor probably will it be the last.
As the ULS, you are under a statutory obligation to protect the public in all matters related to the law. There is no question about this duty. I would like to suggest that you explore opportunities that can assist you to meet your obligations in this regard.
No doubt you are aware of the existence of the treaty that set up the International Criminal Court. One of the conferences related to this court was held in Uganda and Uganda was an active participant in the finalisation of the treaties that led to its set up. These treaties have been domesticated in Uganda. One aspect of the same is the concurrent jurisdiction of the court and municipal authorities in respect of certain crimes.
As you no doubt know it is the responsibility of states to protect its people using the law. Criminal Law was ordinarily a matter of national jurisdiction but this changed with the emergence of both international criminal law and jurisdiction. States bear the primary responsibility of enforcing criminal law. However, in respect of some crimes, where states are unable or unwilling to do so, it is open to the international community to do so. In this regard the International Criminal Court will then have jurisdiction to investigate, prosecute and render judgment, in such matters. Torture is one such crime that is an offence both under international criminal law and our own law.
Have the victims of torture at Nalufenya Police Station or other places in Uganda received Justice? I am not aware. Was action undertaken by the responsible municipal or national authorities to prosecute those responsible? I do not recall. It is incumbent upon the Uganda Law Society to seek justice for our people. No statute of limitations relates to the commission of crimes. Neither is there immunity for crimes that arise under International Criminal Law.
How can technology aid this effort? In many ways. An electronic search of online publications would be a first step to aid your effort. It can provide the starting point. You can be in touch with the International Criminal Court, sharing with it, your findings locally, and requesting that they take interest in the investigation of these matters. Technology makes it possible to communicate with this organisation at very little cost. Technology makes it possible to gather and transmit evidence at very little cost.
Conclusion
We are living in precarious times. One philosopher has noted that love and fear are some of the main factors that influence conduct of people. Torture is one agent used to engender fear in individuals and the public, apart from the damage it inflicts on individual lives, families, communities and nations. It is your duty to exact accountability for our people and discourage the use of torture as a weapon of influence in our nation. I implore you to use technology as a tool in defence of our people. If you do so, you will have advanced access to justice and ethical governance thorough technology in our nation. It is now my singular honour to declare this Digital Transformation Festival open. I thank you for listening to me. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
