UGANDA: THOMAS KWOYELO DEFENSE COUNSELS CHALLENGES I.C.D, THEIR CLIENT WAS CHARGED ON UNFOUNDED 4 INTERNATIONAL JURISPRUDENCE

Clab Alaka, the lead Defense Counsel representing the former Lord Resistance Army (LRA) Commandeer, Thomas Kwoyelo aka Latoni, dismisses all the 87 counts charges charged with Kwoyelo on the ground that the charges does not contravene Municipality law and crimes law.

We ask ICD court to throw out all the charges.

GULU CITY Monday JULY 22, 2024.

By Okumu Langol Livingstone

The deadly episodic occurrence descended in Gulu International Crime Division (ICD) trial of the former LRA commander, Thomas Kwoyelo as Justice Michael Elubu says, are you ready Clab Alaka to proceed with your final submission.

The four ICD judges, Justice Michael Elubu, Duncan Gaswa CA, Stephen Mubiru and Bashajja K. Andrew appeared in gloomy pungent to make the judgments to the victorious and the looser Kwoyelo former LRA versus the blood feud Kampala regime, we got you.

The brilliant highly acclaimed Ugandan Lawyer Clab Alaka, stood to be humiliated although he put a strong defense challenge in the history of Uganda court jurisprudent, as Kwoyelo’s case drags for one and a half decade (16 years).

Verbatim

Clab Alaka, short back, he quietly stood up on a witty manner and said my lord, yes I am ready but, before I to want highlight my concerns in relation of the closing submission before we go to that, I want to get permission from you.

Justice Elubu, yes Mr. Alaka. You can go on.

Caleb Alaka, Justice Elubu, today is the highlight of the submission; otherwise the lawyers have done their job and need highlight, as per the schedule given to us the defense.

It was in June 2024, the accused counsels gave their submissions, as bard in record, says neatly the soft copies also, and defense counsel’s reply both in hard and soft copy.

The exercise of this afternoon as party is just to give highlights otherwise; the submission is already in court files. We are alluding on Municipal law, this is to remember a new law we wanted to bring to the consent of that legal law of the victims.

I am bringing it at this stage, because in the objectives of this court, the accused should not have two cases on him.

First and foremost, my lord, the submission of the legal representatives of the victims filed before you, it shows that whatever the victims is doing we are not against it. But, the evidence of the court chapter13 page 48,50,51 for instance paragraph 51 Says Kwoyelo was perpetrator of the Abera  village killings, survivors of the killings of four people on October 17 and 22, 1993 indicating that Kwoyelo killed Albert Obwoya, Christine Acheng, Obol Dennis and Okot Richard, murdered them in the village of Abera, Pabbo Sub County.

And also referred to paragraph 23, pages 204, all that observation, my lord we see one peculiarity in this one submission intended by victims counsels to persuade court to convict Thomas Kwoyelo.

Caleb Alaka, ask ICD court while making highlight that Judges should throw away Thomas Kwoyelo cases because he was charged under an founded International Jurisprudent accused was charged with three categories’ offenses that were under Geneva foundation, the offense violation of international Law.

“Kwoyelo was charged under Geneva convention, International Criminal Court (ICC), International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda Tribunal, International Tribunal for the Yogalovia 1993-2017 and the Internal Charter Jurisprudent of Nurnberg. So our client Thomas Kwoyelo is being illegal kept in ICD tral.

At this juncture the same Lawyers of the victims gave their submissions as if they are ruling.

“We found that this not the submission, but extension of the court ruling. We pray that this submission should be expunged, it means that the accused is fronting two courts, they are being accused with and the one from the submission we pray that this case should be ruled before we proceed.”

George William Byansi, Deputy DPP, the accused counsel for victims submitted that their submission is not an extension of the court.

“Our position is that the victims submission is not an extension, we wish to disassociate ourselves from the submission, during the trial, the DPP did their work apart from us, the way we see it is a mere observation not the ruling, my lord. The way we have used the closing language.” Deputy DPP.

Ads, to us, we see their defense submission as only way they want it to appear, our prayer is that the submission remain in court record, let court see what is right for the jurisprudent.

Henry Komakech Kilama, one of the accused witness’s counsels, says the vocation raised by our colleagues was not raised before for us to know, if by all any chances then the court should disregard, it’s not our rules, “That part was not proper if what was raised is true.

Justice Elubu, can you tell the court, because this submission, because your brother say you attack the court.

Witnesses counsel, Komakech Kilama, ask court that we are praying that the court should not expunge the submission, but look at the area raised to expunge.

Justice Michael Elubu ruled that the court is aware that the accused has colluded crimes or not, the court is the one to decide, we have the pleas from the defense counsels, we are going to put our record in the file, Justice Michael Elubu ruled.

On record; Caleb Alaka continues with defense submission in the afternoon as follows:

Final submission, on 14 charges, the first key to note the accused was 12 years old, initiated to rebel rank, his role was limited to medical duty treating sick people, mothers, children, pregnant women, his roles was not associated to military roles.

He has been in prison from 2009 up to date, analyzing the evidences ‘are the principles of contradiction we are analyzing. We invite you your lordship, my lord, you need to find out the sum total so that you will find that those witnesses are telling court lies.

We invite you to rap the case, we also analyze these evidences’, the law of court evidence and we have to attack all evidences’ on both counts. Specifically my lord, we invite the court to look at those two issues, the total submission is between pages 48-254, the evidences fall short of issues where the evidences fall short, we ask court to rule rightly.

We wish to set the jurisprudent of this court which is alternative of this court, the reason we say, my lord if there is alternative charges to add, the evidences, can court confirm which case are the accused person stands for, we need the court to guide us on the alternative changes, which on arrival charges or capital offense or murder charges.

We also ask court to resolve a case to answer or not and the alternative charges should also continue, the sum total of 236, we invite to set the accused free.

My lord, to consider our submission, we highlights 4 values, we pray to court to make their final judgments

Caleb Alaka, the defense counsel further lays more submission says on June 21, 2024 where we addressed court, we had 90 evidences and addressed all the concerns. During the trial, we had to handle evidences, as we interviewed witnesses.

My lord, to understand the evidences, we handled the evidences one by one, we have demonstrated that the accused person was not found guilty of all the counts, my lord, when you go about court, there are some evidences which has not been challenged,

George William Byansi, Deputy DPP, state prosecutor in his submission highlight says, first, the existence of conflict in northern Uganda from 1986 to 1997, this conflict has been an armed conflict, the players of the conflict we said issues of the conflict we have dealt with it heavily in our defense.

Despite the nature of the conflict were not dispatch the nature has been, we have looked at long conflict between civilian population and attack on harmed forces, the causes of the harm conflict, and there has been relation.

My lord, the LRA and the Uganda People Defense Forces (UPDF) war was not disputed; the LRA was an organized harms force, who tried to take power with Bridges, Divisions and Battalion with Platoon commander.

The allies of the LRA war was well planned, my lord, the accused Mr. Kwoyelo Thomas lived and stayed with LRA until he was captured on 3 March 2009. It was not disputed when he was LRA, he was in LRA rank to Col. And at the same time he was in charge of sick bay.

The accused shared command plan with LRA top commander, my lord is also in our accusation doing the LRA he had wives and bore children, the accused agreed, my lord the counts raise when the accused was in LRA was not challenged

“The only issues the accused is the issues of participation and the issues of conflict, we have dealt with heavily.

The witnesses of the state prosecutor pin the accused at the scene of crimes; the witnesses identified the accused on the scene of the crimes. The difference of defense counsels, we have talk on it in court.

My lord, there is no proper evidence; we therefore adopt our written submission where the court find the accused guilty on all the count. The issues of legality we have also addressed in this court, this submission, not the accused to answer. But the defense counsel is trying to smuggle their case in a wrong court, my lord as i pray to this court to find the accused guilty.

The three court Assessors will make their highlight submission on Friday, July 2, 2024, before the four Judges led by Michael Elubu.