The start two weeks ago was great. Ashley and I spent the day finishing the sections for the report that we are writing. I helped research and write the sections on child sacrifice and children on remand. Some of the stories of child sacrifice are horrific. The newspapers have no qualms with putting pictures of the mutilated bodies of children on the front page. The resurgence of witchcraft in Uganda is one of the reasons that child sacrifice is happening with increased frequency. People participate in human sacrifice believing it will bring them good luck and will bring them out of poverty. Children are often chosen because they are seen as pure which makes them more powerful. There was one case where a prominent businessman was convicted of participating in child sacrifice because he put a skull in the foundation of his building to keep the structure from falling. In researching this topic, some recommendations have been formulated to help curb the crime. For instance, raising awareness in children about the dangers of being kidnapped will make it more difficult to lure them away. There is no legal framework specifically preventing human sacrifice. The relevant laws are the Witchcraft Act of 1957, which says that anyone partaking in witchcraft can be convicted of a crime. The problem is that the Witchcraft Act is not widely known nor enforced. In addition, there is the Children Statute, which says that children have the right to be free from violence. It is recommended that legislation prohibiting child sacrifice be created.

Monday night was the start of our medical adventure. One of our colleagues at the office was in a car accident and in the hospital, so we went to visit him. Our next project is going to be working on physical disabilities in Uganda so Ashley decided it would be a good idea to see firsthand what the hospital situation was like. Ashley thought she had malaria so Tuesday morning I went with her to the hospital and she was diagnosed with “a whole lot of dysentery.” We have seen the difference in the hospitals now and worked with the nurses and the doctor who were all wonderful. We went home that same day with antibiotics and yummy rehydration salts. The publication is essentially in the editing stages so I was able to work for home and be with Ashley who spent Tuesday and Wednesday in bed.

Our time with FHRI is great and they are very accommodating. We were able to visit Kampiringisa (the National Rehabilitation Centre for juvenile offenders) after Ashley returned to work. Children go to Kampiringisa once they are convicted of a crime. FHRI had already been there, but felt that it would be beneficial to our understanding of the issues surrounding juvenile justice if we went and conducted interviews as well. We were able to interview the head social worker and several children. We went on a tour of the facility and I realized there is very little security. The home is in the middle of nowhere, so even if the children escape to the closest town, the police bring them back. Kampiringisa also houses street children who are rounded up off the street. It was surprising and heart wrenching to see children as young as one and two who were street children.

Last week was a great week because we were able to attend a meeting on defending human rights defenders in Uganda. We were also able to attend a conference on protecting minority rights. The most contentious issue is that of sexual minorities. There are very distinct and opposing camps here in Uganda regarding this issue, and the candid discussion was very interesting. We also sat down with our supervisor and discussed our plan of action for the remaining weeks that we are here so now we are doing a needs analysis on problems faced by persons with disabilities as we finish up the juvenile justice report.