WUNRN
http://www.iccwomen.org/images/Murder-of-Ugandan-Prosecutor-Joan-Kagezi.pdf
Women’s Initiatives &
Partners Deeply Saddened by Murder of Ugandan Prosecutor Joan Kagezi
31 March 2015
The Women’s Initiatives for
Gender Justice and our partners in Uganda are greatly saddened by the tragic
news of the death of Joan Kagezi, Senior Principal State Attorney in Uganda,
who headed the Directorate of Public Prosecution’s war crimes and
anti-terrorism division. The Ugandan government has confirmed that Joan Kagezi
was killed yesterday evening in Kampala by unidentified assailants, who opened
fire on her while she was driving home from work. It has been reported that
Joan stopped at a fruit stall on her way home and it was at that time that she
was shot twice by gunmen on a motorcycle. It appears that some of her children
and possibly other family members were also in the car with Joan at the time of
the attack.
News reports suggest that
her murder may be linked to her role as lead prosecutor in a high profile
terrorism case, involving suspects in the 2010 terrorist bombings in Kampala.
Joan Kagezi was a long-time
friend of the Women’s Initiatives. We maintained regular contact with Joan in
our monitoring and advocacy regarding prosecutions associated with the
LRA-related conflict before the International Crimes Division (ICD) of the High
Court of Uganda – Uganda’s domestic war crimes court. Joan’s relentless efforts
to ensure accountability for war crimes perpetrated during the conflict in
northern Uganda, along with other serious crimes, despite significant legal,
institutional and security-related hurdles, served as an inspiration to us and
the international justice community at large.
WI partners in Uganda are
particularly mourning Joan’s death and the brutal way in which her life ended.
Joan Kagezi was a dedicated
advocate for gender justice, who collaborated closely with the Women’s
Initiatives to this end on numerous occasions. She often spoke about the
obstacles in combating impunity for sexual and gender-based crimes before the
ICD in Uganda and also spoke with pride about some of the progress made by her
office in this area.
The Women’s Initiatives, our
partners, associates and allies honour the extraordinary bravery and commitment
Joan demonstrated in her role as prosecutor of the ICD and we extend our
deepest sympathies to her family, friends, and colleagues in the justice
community in Uganda.