The Uganda High Court in Kampala has ruled that sedition is no longer a criminal offence because it is not in conformity with the 1995 Uganda Constitution.
Five judges led by Justice Leticia Kikonyogo, nullified sections 39 and 40 of the Penal Code, which define and establish the law on sedition.
The judges ruled that those sections of the Penal Code are unconstitutional and inconsistent with Article 29 (1) of the constitution which guarantee freedom of speech. The existence of sedition sections are not in conformity within the acceptable limit of speech.
The ruling was as a result of a case filed by an editor of The Independent magazine Andrew Mwenda in 2005.
Andrew Mwenda and the East African Media Institute (EAMI) through lawyers James Nangwala and Kenneth Kakuru petitioned the constitutional court challenging the provisions on sedition in the Penal Code Act. They also challenged the constitutionality of sedition arguing that it was a violation of the right to freedom of expression which is guaranteed by Article 29 of the Ugandan Constitution.
Under the Penal code Act, Sedition is defined as where a person alters or publishes statements aimed at bringing hatred, contempt or disaffection against the president, the government or the judiciary. The Act sets seven years of imprisonment on conviction.
Mwenda was charged with sedition in 2005 arising from his critical “Mwenda Live” a talk show he modulated on Kfm radio, a local fm station in Kampala owned by the Aga Khan group which also runs Nation TV and Nation newspapers of East Africa.
The verdict is not only a victory for the journalists but also politicians especially those on the opposition side or people with divergent views. Sedition is where words or actions are uttered or made with intent to make people rebellious against authority of the state ; this can be in speeches or advocacy.
Several journalists in Uganda, Africa and beyond welcomed the ruling saying that similar draconian media laws like the proposed Press and Journalist Statute (2010 amendment bill), need to be fought.
Source African Press Agency
African News from NetNewsPublisher.com
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