Ugandan MPs call for legislation on domestic violence against men

By ISAAC KHISA
Published November 19, 2009

Neighbours and onlookers gather outside a house in Namuwungo where Maj Gen Kazini was killed.

Ugandan MPs are calling for the urgent enactment of legislation on domestic violence following a spate of deaths triggered by domestic disagreements. The recent killing of Maj. Gen. James Kazini, a former Uganda army commander, allegedly by his girlfriend at Namuwongo, a Kampala suburb, is raising concerns about an emerging trend in which men are increasingly becoming victims of violent spouses and girlfriends.

Gen Kazini, 52, a father of four was killed at his girlfriend’s home after a brief quarrel, according to the neighbours, who preferred anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The girlfriend was arrested and has since admitted to killing Mazini. The two apparently disagreed when Kazini forced the girlfriend to refund money she had allegedly stolen from him, which she denied. She says it was during that fracas that she took an iron bar and hit him thrice on the head in self defence.

Maj Gen Kazini's girlfriend being led to court

“I cannot believe that a girlfriend has killed Gen Kazini, who had survived many bullets at the battle fronts,” Mr John Tumwebaze, businessman in Kampala City said.

Kazini’s colleagues in the army have spoken fondly of the General. The army spokesperson Felix Kulaigye, said it was “a great disappointment for a man who has survived bullets to die in such a simple manner”.

In June 8, 2003 Kazini handed over the mantle of UPDF command to the then Maj. Gen. Aronda Nyakairima at an emotional function in Bombo Barracks, where he lamented that he had failed to quell the LRA rebellion under his tenure. He had earlier promised to resign if the LRA had not been defeated by December 31, 2002.

Since then, Maj Gen Kazini has been battling in the General Court Martial, accused of creating ghost soldiers in the army while still in command.

Other cases

Police in Kampala are holding a woman for allegedly trying to murder her husband, Mr Topher Kawuma, a boda-boda cyclist and the entire family last weekend.

This came barely a week after she threw her child in the toilet on October 5 this year.

The Deputy Police Spokesperson, Kampala Metropolitan, Mr Henry Kalulu told journalists that the suspect first lit the curtain and locked the door with the intention of ending their lives. Ms Flavia Drawari, 20, a resident of Kinawataka Mbuya zone, a Kampala suburb, confessed to police that she committed the offence because he used to beat her.

“I wanted to kill all of them because the man (husband) used to beat me,” Ms Drawari, said.

Meanwhile, police in Bugiri district in the eastern part of the country near the Busia boarder are reportedly holding a 32-year-old woman who allegedly chopped off her husband’s testicles after a quarrel. Stella Auma, a resident of Hama village, reportedly attacked her husband identified as Johnson Wafula, for denying her sex. The police said Auma had also previously accused the deceased of having multiple sexual affairs with other women.

A neighbour, Mr James Makhoha, said the couple engaged in a bitter quarrel when the man returned home from a drinking spree. Wafula was rushed to Buyinja Health Centre where he later died. The District Police Commander, Mr Patrick Omara, said Auma will be charged with murder.

With the increase in murder cases among married couples, the opposition Democratic Party (DP) has asked Parliament to fast track the process of passing the Marriage and Divorce bill, and the Domestic Violence bill to curb the increasing cases of domestic violence in Uganda.

The Domestic Violence bill is currently tabled before Parliament for the first reading while consultations on the Marriage and Divorce bill are still ongoing in different parts of the country.

DP Chairperson for Nakawa division, east of Kampala City, Mr Kenneth Paul Kakande, blamed the increased cases of domestic violence on the delays in enacting relevant laws regarding relationships.

“The government should first implement the Domestic Violence and Marriage and Divorce Bill to protect the citizens against what is happening in this country,” Mr Kakande told journalists on Tuesday during a press conference in Kampala.

He said if Domestic Violence and Marriage and Divorce Bill were in place, Maj Gen Kazini would not have been killed by a woman.The bill was prepared in 2003 but up to now has not been passed by parliament due to resistance from some MPs who say it is likely to break up people’s marriages.

Reach Isaac Khisa at editor@eafricainfocus.com