Eron Kiiza, the lawyer of four-time presidential candidate Dr. Kizza Besigye, has lost his bid to regain freedom after the High Court dismissed his application.
Kiiza was sentenced to nine months in prison by the General Court Martial (GCM) for contempt of court.
Justice Douglas Singiza ruled that Kiiza failed to follow the proper procedure for seeking release from the Court Martial. The judge stated that the correct procedure would have been to approach the court through an application for judicial review.
“I take the firm view that the procedure adopted by the applicant to challenge the impugned conviction and sentence was an incorrect one. I would probably have attempted to answer the motion questions had the applicant approached this court by way of an application for judicial review. Moreover, this Court would not be clothed with the requisite criminal appellate or revisionary powers to examine the challenged conviction and sentence by the GCM,” Singiza ruled.
Kiiza’s application was based on a Supreme Court ruling that declared the General Courts-martial lacked jurisdiction to try civilians. However, Justice Singiza held that Kiiza should have first challenged the conviction and sentence before an appellate court .
Kiiza was arrested on January 7 for allegedly exhibiting gross professional misconduct while representing Dr. Besigye. He was subdued by soldiers and sentenced to nine months in prison without a hearing.
The High Court’s decision means Kiiza will remain in prison, serving his nine-month sentence. His legal team had argued that his continued detention was a violation of his personal liberty, but the court rejected this argument.
