By: Emily Kuhn
Over the past year, my team has conducted research to support efforts aimed at handling sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) cases more efficiently in Uganda. With nearly ninety-five percent of women in Uganda having experienced physical or sexual violence, the impact of these crimes is deeply felt across the country. Our findings highlight opportunities for the Ugandan Judiciary to establish specialized SGBV courts, explore alternative trial models, and expand legislation to better protect victims. This project has always been more than statistics and legislation to me and my team, as some of us witnessed its effects firsthand last summer. Seeing the reality on the ground reinforced the importance and urgency of the work done by the Center for Global Justice.
I had the incredible opportunity to work for the Supreme Court and the Directorate of Public Prosecutions of Uganda this past summer. While my internship involved many traditional legal experiences, such as brief and opinion writing, legal research, and court shadowing, what truly set it apart was the direct engagement I had with people at the heart of the justice system. I had the rare opportunity to work inside prisons, directly advocating for clients and witnessing the real-life implications of our research.
I spent most of my time with clients in a maximum-security facility, where those accused or convicted of capital offenses reside. I assisted in the plea-bargaining process for individuals accused of offenses such as human trafficking, aggravated defilement, and murder. A significant percentage of the cases I assisted with were related to sexual or gender-based violence, reinforcing the urgent need for reform to ensure that justice is never delayed or denied for victims of some of Uganda’s most rampant crimes.
The work we have been part of over the past year has been incredibly meaningful to me and my team. I can still remember the faces of the victims in our SGBV case files and think of and pray for them every time I sit down to work on this project. It has been an opportunity to serve and love our neighbors in a concrete way, standing for truth and justice, even from across the world. I am hopeful that our efforts will have a lasting impact on the lives of those facing oppression and bring healing and meaningful change for survivors.
This post was written by a student at Regent University School of Law. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.