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Presidential Immunity from Criminal Prosecution in the Ugandan Constitution: Drafting History and Emerging Jurisprudence

Presidential Immunity from Criminal Prosecution in the Ugandan Constitution: Drafting History and... RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ­ ACTUALITÉS PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY FROM CRIMINAL PROSECUTION IN THE UGANDAN CONSTITUTION: DRAFTING HISTORY AND EMERGING JURISPRUDENCE I. INTRODUCTION The practice of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Special Court for Sierra Leone makes it clear that presidential immunity is not a defence for those alleged to have committed international crimes, such as war crimes and crimes against humanity. 1 In many African countries a sitting head of state is immune from prosecution in the domestic courts not only for breaking the country's laws but also for breaking international law.2 Uganda has had a long history of presidential immunity from criminal prosecution. Article 34(2) of the 1966 Constitution of Uganda provided that `[t]he President shall [. . . ] take precedence over all persons in Uganda and shall not be liable to any proceedings whatsoever in any court.'3 The same provision appeared in article 24(3) of the 1967 Constitution. When Ugandans enacted a new Constitution in 1995, articles 98(4)&(5) were included, and they provide that a president is immune from criminal prosecution but that that immunity expires when he ceases to be president. On 14 June 2002 LLD (University of the Western Cape, UWC), LLM (University http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png African Journal of International and Comparative Law Edinburgh University Press

Presidential Immunity from Criminal Prosecution in the Ugandan Constitution: Drafting History and Emerging Jurisprudence

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Publisher
Edinburgh University Press
Copyright
© Edinburgh University Press 2014
Subject
Recent Developments – Actualitiés; African Studies
ISSN
0954-8890
eISSN
1755-1609
DOI
10.3366/ajicl.2014.0084
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ­ ACTUALITÉS PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY FROM CRIMINAL PROSECUTION IN THE UGANDAN CONSTITUTION: DRAFTING HISTORY AND EMERGING JURISPRUDENCE I. INTRODUCTION The practice of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Special Court for Sierra Leone makes it clear that presidential immunity is not a defence for those alleged to have committed international crimes, such as war crimes and crimes against humanity. 1 In many African countries a sitting head of state is immune from prosecution in the domestic courts not only for breaking the country's laws but also for breaking international law.2 Uganda has had a long history of presidential immunity from criminal prosecution. Article 34(2) of the 1966 Constitution of Uganda provided that `[t]he President shall [. . . ] take precedence over all persons in Uganda and shall not be liable to any proceedings whatsoever in any court.'3 The same provision appeared in article 24(3) of the 1967 Constitution. When Ugandans enacted a new Constitution in 1995, articles 98(4)&(5) were included, and they provide that a president is immune from criminal prosecution but that that immunity expires when he ceases to be president. On 14 June 2002 LLD (University of the Western Cape, UWC), LLM (University

Journal

African Journal of International and Comparative Law – Edinburgh University Press

Published: Feb 1, 2014

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