JUSTICE TRENDS JUSTICE TRENDS Nr. 1 | June 2017 | Page 176

HUMAN RIGHTS / DERECHOS HUMANOS
station. I would write memorandums of appeal to the political leaders,
to the religious leaders, and to other “top people” in the Government,
asking them to hear our voice and trying to plead to the president of
Uganda to abolish the death penalty. It was an extensive campaign,
and I wanted to expose myself to the media. I would use those
opportunities, as a leader, to make sure that our voices were heard.
So, those are some of the circumstances that led me to be a part in
that case, but, well, regarding the fact that it was my name that stood
out, I wouldn’t say that it was something so special, but, of course,
I think it actually depended on all the activities that I was involved
in. Other inmates were also behind me and supporting me, there was
also lobbying in different areas. But because I was actively more
involved than the others, I definitely captured the outside audience.
I wasn’t a coward, you know?
“
Prisons in Africa should become places
of positive transformation, which is the first
thing in human rights and rehabilitation
(…) Deprivation of freedom does not mean
deprivation of humanity. ”
JT: It was the first time in the World History that a country’s
entire death row population filed a joint petition against capital
punishment.
How was this possible? And how do you comment on the role
that the Foundation for Human Rights Initiative and the Law
Firm had on this case?
SK: The Foundation for Human Rights Initiative played a very
important and pivotal role in filing this petition and engaging the
international community to come up and support this petition.
And they spearheaded it because we were behind bars! They were
there for all of us, the inmates that had been sentenced to death.
And Katende Ssempebwa & Company Advocates was the Law firm
that represented us legally in court and they did a lot of research,
which was essential and really helped the success of the case,
because it was the first of its kind, so we needed all that.
JT: Being deprived of freedom and awaiting to be executed is
something that hardly can be described in words, but would
you please try to retrace your thoughts and feelings when you
were on that situation and tell us about your life back then?
SK: Being sentenced to death is worse than living as a blind person,
because your entire being is clouded in darkness. I lost hope and,
since I was still a young girl, I thought that my life had gone to
waste. I’ve always asked myself: “ Why me?”
Hopelessness crippled in and everywhere I looked seemed like
there was no way out, there was no hope. I thought about how I
would die... I could, at times, hold my breath to imagine how my
life would be squeezed out of me. And whenever I would capture
those moments I would be so scared. It’s a horrible indescribable
feeling as you can imagine. They tell you you’re going to die when
you’re not sick... It was horrible!
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en una campaña contra la pena de muerte cuando todavía estaba en
prisión. Hice la mayor parte de mi defensa a través de canciones, a
través del cabildeo de los medios de comunicación – di entrevistas
a una estación de televisión y una estación de radio local. Escribí
memorandos de apelación a los dirigentes políticos, a los líderes
religiosos y a otras “personas de primer nivel” del Gobierno,
pidiéndoles que oyeran nuestra voz e intentaran pedir al presidente
de Uganda que abolie