Civil and criminal remedies are available to victims of domestic violence. In terms of Section 4 of the Domestic Violence Act, a victim of domestic violence may rely on the following remedies:
- criminal remedies, in the form of a fine, not exceeding 48 currency points, or imprisonment, not exceeding two years, or both
- civil remedies, in the form of payment of monetary compensation, the amount of which may be determined by the court in its discretion
Further, a court may make another appropriate order, such as granting the victim of domestic violence a protection order, as discussed in Section 3 below, or an order for the perpetrator to vacate the matrimonial home or other home, in accordance with Regulation 33 of the Domestic Violence Regulations. An order to vacate the matrimonial home is only granted in very limited circumstances (where the perpetrator threatens or where they attempted to kill the victim) and it is subject to strict evidence requirements.
Arguably, the Constitution of Uganda indirectly recognizes freedom from domestic violence as a human right, given that Chapter 4 of the Constitution of Uganda, which provides for the "protection and promotion of fundamental and other human rights and freedoms," explicitly recognizes the following human rights, among others:
- No person will be subjected to any form of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.[5]
- No person will be compulsorily deprived of property or any interest in or right over property of any description, with certain limited exceptions.[6]
- The state will provide the facilities and opportunities necessary to enhance the welfare of women to enable them to realize their full potential and advancement.[7]
- The Constitution of Uganda prohibits laws, cultures, customs or traditions that are against the dignity, welfare or interest of women or that undermine their status.[8]
As such, arguably, protection from domestic violence falls within the scope of fundamental human rights, as recognized in the Constitution of Uganda.
The CEDAW
Uganda ratified the CEDAW in 1985, without reservation. In 2010, the Ugandan Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Development ("Ministry") submitted a periodic report on the implementation of the CEDAW in Uganda. The report detailed a number of measures and anticipated steps put in place to address, implement and domesticate the CEDAW recommendations.[9] The Ministry committed to sending an updated report concerning the status of its implementation of the CEDAW recommendations before the end of 2017; however, it has since failed to do so.[10] Nevertheless, Uganda has taken positive steps in realizing and domesticating the CEDAW recommendations. The most significant step taken by Uganda in this regard is its signing into law the Domestic Violence Act.
The Maputo Protocol
Uganda ratified the Maputo Protocol in 2010, with reservations. In response to the requirement to provide periodic reports, Uganda submitted its initial report to the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights ("Commission") and, in 2015, the Commission released its observations and recommendations. The Commission noted that the report did not provide sufficient detail regarding Uganda's implementation of the Maputo Protocol. Further, the Commission made a significant observation, stating that Uganda had failed to fully domesticate the Maputo Protocol, which has impeded the full realization of the rights of women guaranteed under the Maputo Protocol. As such, the Commission recommended that Uganda expedite the domestication of a number of human rights instruments, including the Maputo Protocol.[11] Uganda has yet to submit a further report to the Commission and, therefore, it is difficult to fully analyze the extent to which the Maputo Protocol has been implemented. Nevertheless, we could conclude that the country has made very little progress by way of implementing and domesticating the Maputo Protocol into local law, given that a number of organizations have noted Uganda's poor implementation of the Maputo Protocol, including the SRHR.[12]