During the pandemic, underage pregnancies soared in Uganda with a 366.5% increase in girls aged 10-14 becoming pregnant, according to BBC Africa Eye investigation.
The cases of child sexual abuse and incest in northern Uganda have raised concerns about the justice system of the East African nation.
During the pandemic, underage pregnancies soared in Uganda with a 366.5% increase in girls aged 10-14 becoming pregnant, according to BBC Africa Eye investigation.
It noted that the north, in particular, has suffered a tragic level of child sexual abuse and incest – which many claim is caused by a legacy of a 20-year civil war led by Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).
According to the report, Uganda’s Stolen Innocence, the BBC Africa Eye reporter Paul Bakibinga returned to his homeland of Uganda and travelled to the north to investigate the true scale of the problem in the region, and the price of justice for many.
Dr Baifa Arwinyo, Head of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Gulu Regional General Hospital, told the BBC about the complexities of underage pregnancies.
She said, “From the last financial year’s report, about 23% of our pregnancies were teenagers. If I'm talking of teenage mothers, all of them are defiled.”
“Because they are young, their bodies are not developed to handle a delivery. And you’ll find that young mothers are the highest proportion of those dying of obstructed labour,” she added.
In Uganda, defilement is defined as unlawful sexual intercourse with a girl below the age of 18 – the legal age of consent. If a girl is under 14, or her abuser is a carer or HIV positive, or if the accused is a repeat offender, it becomes aggravated defilement. Incest is a separate crime under the Penal Code.
Despite ongoing cases of defilement, the investigation found that criminal convictions remain low due to scarce resources and alleged corruption throughout the justice system.
A mother to a three-year-old victim who was defiled by a relation told BBC Africa Eye of her ordeal to find justice.
“The community wanted everything to be kept within, but the police had already been informed and he got arrested,” she said.
According to the report, despite medical evidence supporting the abuse, the perpetrator was released on bail as the due legal process was not followed properly. The mother did not have the financial means to continue the legal case.
Eunice Lakaraber Latim, legal counsel for NGO Caritas, explained how poverty and corruption have led to an increase in such cases: “Growing up from Gulu, I saw so many children getting defiled, and most of those parents did not have the resources to pursue the justice that their children deserved.”
“You have to literally pay your way to get justice. You have to pay money for fuel to have the suspect apprehended,” she added.
Minister of State for Northern Uganda, Grace Freedom Kwiyucwiny who spoke to the platform in an interview, acknowledged wider challenges within the justice system. “I can't deny corruption…It's at all levels. We have laws on defilement, we have laws on incest, but somehow again, people just go behind the law and bribe police.”
On the level of cases prosecuted, Kwiyucwiny was quoted to have added: “There are cases which have been prosecuted, but the number is not high. From the cases which were reported, only 6% reached court.”
The Regional Police Commander Nachula Damalie denied police corruption but admitted that there were problems in how some cases are dealt with.
In northern Uganda, the violent 20-year conflict is a critical context.
The BBC spoke to Pamela Angwech, director of Gulu Women’s Economic Development and Globalization (GWED-G), to understand how the post-conflict legacy left by Joseph Kony and the LRA has fuelled sexual abuse and gender-based violence. She explains how the LRA used sexual abuse as “a military strategy”.
“I describe it as the war was fought in the body of the woman and the woman became the battlefield.” Pamela said.
“Living within a toxic, minefield environment had long-term effects on the community. People are used to seeing death. People begin to think that sexual and gender-based abuse seems to not be the highest level of abuse.”