The High Court in Kampala has ordered that each of the 22 suspects in the murder case of former police spokesperson Andrew Felix Kaweesi, be compensated with Shs80 million for a violation of their rights.
Justice Margret Oguli on Thursday ordered the government to pay Shs80 million to each of the suspects at 20 percent interest from the date of the court ruling (October 12, 2017) on grounds that prison authorities violated their rights by torturing them while in custody.
According to the judge, “The applicants are still suspects until proven guilty. And should be treated well without torturing them.” In furtherance, the judge asserted that there was enough evidence to show that prison authorities were hiding something when they refused to subject the suspects to medication.
The suspects’ lawyer Ladislaus Rwakafuzi, had earlier filed an application seeking court orders compelling the government to take them for medical examination to verify the cause of injuries they had.The suspects told the court that they were arrested from their homes and unlawfully detained in military custody before being transferred to the dreaded Nalufenya Police Station in Jinja District which is reputed for torture.
