Uganda Law Society (ULS) and Radical New Bar (RNB) have hosted the 10th RNB Live Weekly Hybrid Press and Public Engagement, focusing on the constitutional right to a fair hearing and political prisoners as new battlegrounds for the Generation Z movement in Uganda.
The opening session on Thursday, April 16th, 2026, at the ULS House, located at Plot 5A1 John Babiiha Road, focused on fair hearings and the importance of lawyers and courts.
According to senior advocate Phillip Karugabasenior advocate Phillip Karugaba, who quoted the historic case of the Uganda Law Society versus the Attorney General in 2002, fair hearings are essential for protecting citizens against abuse of power and maintaining the rule of law.
“The right to a fair hearing is absolute. Speed must be compatible with fairness,” he said.
Karugaba pointed out the three-hour court-martial process that resulted in the execution of soldiers without legal representation, adding that any form of speeding up the system, such as mobile courts, could result in similar violations.
Advocate Ronald Katushabe and Dean Lubowa Saava, who spent six months in Luzira prison after refusing bribes, joined in the criticism.
“Accepted plea bargain not due to offense, but persecution and not prosecution. Uganda is not safe,” Saava noted.
Turning to Session Two of political prisoners, NUP’s secretary for legal affairs, Jonathan Elotu, elaborated on how civil cases are transformed into criminal cases so that people can be denied bail.
Additionally, Guild President Emeritus Shamim Nambassa, a pharmacist and a Kawempe South LCV councilor, emphasized the challenges faced by political prisoners, noting how legal processes are manipulated to suppress dissent.
“We recognize ourselves as political prisoners. We are modern guerrillas,” she said.
The ULS president, Isaac Ssemakadde, spoke online, saying the legal system in Uganda has been weaponized against those who challenge the status quo, calling for the release of political prisoners.
“Political prisoners are the battlegrounds. Free all political prisoners before the May 12th swear-in; otherwise, we shall have to retake Uganda using all means in our capacity,” he warned.
Robert Benon Jurua moderated the event, attracting over 200 people online. The speakers demanded that the government initiate a national dialogue involving judges and lawyers regarding judicial collusion, systematic trials, monitoring, and resisting police-to-prison regimes.
The forum concluded with renewed commitment by the RNB to advance the issue of structural changes and joint efforts towards constitutionalism and justice.
