JOURNALISM AND THE PENAL CODE ACT

By Lawrence Sunday Ogwang

Uganda Martyrs University-Nkozi

Making a Difference

INSTITUTE OF LANGUAGES AND COMMUNICATION STUDIES

BACHELOR OF JOURNALISM AND MASS COMMUNICATION

FIRST YEAR, SECOND SEMESTER

COURSE UNIT: MEDIA LAW

LECTURER: Sr. Denis Samanya

STUDENT: Ogwang Lawrence 

REG NO: 2018-B271-10020

QUESTION:

Read the Penal Code Act of Uganda and pick out three sections of the code, showing how they can help you to execute your duties as a journalist

1.1 Introduction

Uganda, like any other country, has sets of rules, laws and regulations that govern every citizen of the country. These laws and regulation are recorded in;

The 1995 Constitution of the republic of Uganda, The Computer misuse Act 2011, Electronic Transaction 2011, The Anti-pornography Act 2014, The Uganda Communication Act 2013, The press and Journalism Act 1995 and The Penal Code Act of 1950 among others. These are supposed to help guide all citizens both professionals and non-professionals in the execution of their duties but the big question is how do they help?

This question can be answered differently basing on the different professions but for the sake of this paper, this will be answered in relation to the fourth Estate (field of journalism) basing on three different sections of The Penal Code Act 1950 Cap 120. These sections are:

Ø  Section 123. Definition for rape

Ø  Section 114.  Neglect of duty.

Ø  Section 50. Publication of false news.

1.2 What is the Penal Code Act?

Penal Code Act is a set of laws concerning crimes, offences and the consequent punishment attached to each crime and offence.

1.2.1 Section 123. Definition for rape

Article 123 of The Penal Code Act Chapter 120 provides for a definition of rape stating that any person who has unlawful carnal knowledge of a woman or girl, without her consent has committed rape. A person who has unlawful carnal knowledge with her consent, but the consent is obtained by force, means of threats, intimidation of any kind, or by fear of bodily harm also commits the felony of rape. 

Rape also includes false representations as to the nature of the act, or in the case of a married woman, by personating her husband.  A person who commits rape is liable to suffer death. Any person who attempts to commit rape commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for life with or without corporal punishment.

How does this help me to execute my duties as a journalist?

The Press and Journalism Act of 1995, Cap 105, Part II on Mass Media, Section II,  talks about the Right to publish a newspaper.  Section III of the same Act talks about compliance with other laws and duties.

Accordingly then, one of the main responsibilities of a journalist is upholding the Truth through Verification of the matter at hand before publishing it. This means that a journalist is responsible for reporting the truth, not because it is inherently unbiased but because it upholds the importance of objective verification.

 He should consistently test every fact used in his story, including researching all information shared with it by the sources. A strict adherence to verification ensures that personal and cultural biases don't sneak in and take over reporting.

The aforesaid section of the law therefore helps me a journalist to commit myself to searching for truth before putting it down in black and white. Not every alleged cases of rape are actually rape cases. Some people take chances to claim rape when actually it’s not rape.

The definition provided in the code will help me to the effect that I verify the story at hand and not take it for a gospel truth.

1.2.2 Section 114.  Neglect of duty.

(1) A person who, being employed in a public body or a company in which the Government has shares, neglects to perform any duty which he or she is required to perform by virtue of such employment, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years.

 (2)    It shall be a defense to a charge under subsection (1) that the discharge of the duty in question was impeded by reasonable cause.

How does it help me as a journalist to execute my duties?

One of the main roles of the fourth Estate is to call people to accountability. Key among the people from whom accountability is sought are the: Legislators, Judiciary and the Executives.

These people hold the government offices to serve the public and the citizens. The citizens have the rights to be served by people who work in those offices.

The journalist's duty is to the public, not the government. They hold the government and others in power accountable to the citizens. By being independent from the government, they can monitor power and serve as an information source and not a propaganda mouth. Journalists serve as a watchdog to balance government power and hold it accountable to its citizens.

Since a journalist acts as the mouthpiece and watchdog of the community, and has the responsibility to expose negligence, injustice and abuse of any kind to the public, the aforesaid section of the law will help me as a journalist to call alleged official to account for his action since journalists have responsibility to investigate and report on citizens' needs as they struggle to understand and navigate the working of the government system.

1.2.3 Section 50. Publication of false news.

(1)       Any person who publishes any false statement, rumor or report which is likely to cause fear and alarm to the public or to disturb the public peace commits a misdemeanor.

(2)       It shall be a defense to a charge under subsection (1) if the accused proves that prior to publication, he or she took such measures to verify the accuracy of such statement, rumor or report as to lead him or her reasonably to believe that it was true.

How does it help a journalist to execute his duties?

Section II of the Press and Journalism Act 1995 Cap105, gives a journalist right to publication albeit section III give cautions to any publisher to comply with other laws and duties of a journalist.

Although a journalist enjoys the privilege to publication of any kind according to the press and Journalism Act of 1995, he must also be conscious to comply with other laws and duties that surrounds this. Without prejudice to other responsibilities of a journalist, he is duty bound to always search and publish what is true. Truth therefore, is at the core of the work of a journalist.

This section of the law can therefore help me as a journalist to the effect that before I make any publication, I will have to ensure that what I have is true to the best of my knowledge. This will certainly help me from relapsing into the crime of misdemeanor as spelt out in the code.

1.3 Conclusion

In a nutshell, all the sections of the Penal Code can guide a journalist in executing his/her duties.  In doing this however, a member of the fourth Estate should be able to make use of other laws and regulations put down in different Acts and Articles of the law of the country. This will help and safeguard one from relapsing into the crime of either felony or misdemeanor as spelt out in the code.

MISS CURVY BEAUTY PAGEANT - UGANDA

                

By Lawrence Sunday Ogwang

A truth universally acknowledged is that in this world, anything is possible even the most unthinkable. The caution is to be on the lookout and watch possibilities unfold to the world while we put our brains to task, ransacking it to find which possibility is best and so fall for it.

With a wide range of possibilities before us, others would prefer to fall for what they think is a better option but I would personally say, better is not better where best is expected. Uganda is not any exception when it comes to possibilities. Before the excitement of Miss Uganda Quinn Abenakyo making it to the top five at the Miss World and thereby emerging Miss World-Africa dies out, another opportunity is out for grabs for better or worse. Another beauty pageant, is on in Kampala –Miss Curvy Uganda, spearheaded by talent management agency.

The big question here is ‘what is Miss curvy?’

According to the Marketing Director of Brand Ambassadors, Miss Curvy is a unique beauty Pageant out there to represent the true Ugandan beauty.  Unlike other beauty contests that come with taglines of someone having to be slim and of a certain height, this beauty pageant allows people to maintain their actual natural bodies and bring out their confidence.

Albeit the Marketing Director of Brand Ambassadors says that in the Ugandan context, the pageant won’t feature only curvy Ugandan ladies, explaining that they borrowed the word curvy as a catchment area, still names don’t lie, and it would seem that the major focus of this pageant will be ‘curves don’t lie.’ Even the pictures on the pageant’s advertising posters indicate that the pageant will be heavily oriented towards ‘curves’.

The general opinion about this pageant however is contentious. The majority of people are disenchanted with the idea calling it names basing on the fact that the minister for tourism is quoted to have said that these curvy women can be used to attract tourism in the country. “Tourism is not just about animals, it’s about our food, the way we walk, the way we were created, our curves,” he said during the launch of the pageant in Kampala, Uganda’s capital.

The religious leaders are condemning the move and calling for its cancellation. Talking on their behalf the Arch Bishop Ntahali said "It is a disgusting display of exploitation and brings shame upon our families and our country. The government is promoting trafficking to increase tourism. To present such a programme is to demonstrate how low we have fallen as a country. We cannot accept it and we insist that it be cancelled," reads Ntagali's statement.

A handful of the proponents to this pageant including the minister for tourism and Ms. Anne Mungoma, the chief executive officer of Miss Curvy Uganda however, are left wondering whether this contention is called for claiming that the whole issue has been misunderstood.

Notwithstanding the aforesaid argument of the proponents however, I dare say that tourism as a separate entity is good because it boost the economy of the country and so do beauty of a woman good and worth appreciating. It would only be barbaric, humiliating, dehumanizing, archaic, disingenuous, and perhaps preposterous to use the bodies of women as commodities and objects to boost tourism in the country. This would only sexualize them and make them less human. Above all, focusing on beauty does not add any value to a woman since beauty is the natural endowment by God.

 Consider the following arguments:

One of the reasons why I strongly detest this Miss curvy Beauty pageant is because it objectifies women. Treating a human being as an object is one of the most offensive thing. We clearly haven’t done much as a human race when even in the 21st century we still continue to treat women as objects despite numerous calls for it to not be the case.  This is what the former leader of opposition in parliament condemned on behalf of women in parliament.

 “Together with my colleagues of Uganda Women Parliamentary Association, we condemn acts of objectifying women. The minister should have known that women are more than just bodies, and so we should be treated with honor and respect,” said Winnie Kiiza.

As if that is not enough, Miss curvy beauty pageant places emphasis on beauty over talent.
Although it is true that this contest can make significant changes to the beauty pageant format, experience has shown that there is still no getting around the fact that these events are based on society’s perceptions of beauty. It creates a distinction in the society which reinforces the idea of the “haves” and the “have-nots.”

To the average person (man or woman), the physical requirements of beauty pageants are not obtainable. They either don’t have access to needed resources, family responsibilities, or don’t meet the public standards of “beauty.”

 Sexualizing women in ways that are inappropriate, makes this pageant even more objectionable.
Beauty pageants format of displaying the curvy hips has got sexual connotation, stimulating and wetting the minds of their male counterparts that leaves them either wanting or thirsty. No wonder then that Rita Aciro, the executive director of the Uganda Women’s Network immediately demanded that Mr. Kiwanda apologizes to Ugandan women.

“He should stop using women’s bodies as sex objects. We are not. Not Ugandan women, not any African woman, not any woman in the world,” she said. “Our bodies are not sex objects. We have equal brains, we have equal abilities, and we just need equal opportunities”, Aciro said.

There is also no doubt that this Miss curvy beauty pageant will promote unhealthy physical habits.
Women, especially young women, are always striving to be the next hottest thing. Being curvy is a must for this beauty pageants, which is why such a high percentage of contestants suffer from eating disorders. Others will resort to treating themselves with acidic substance just to make them look curvy.

Along with the body image problems, these women will also typically suffer from depression. The pressure and stress of constantly being judged for you appearance takes a large psychological toll. This therefore, impacts a lot on a woman.

Another dark side of this Miss curvy pageant is that it lowers the dignity of women.

 One of the Zambian writers called Binwell Senyangwe in his book A Cowry of Hope, says that dignity is one thing that should not be taken away from you. Even after everything has been taken away from you, dignity should remain. Meaning that the dignity of women should be respected.

In his response to this dehumanizing contest, the minister for Ethics said “It’s shameful. I strongly condemn it. It demeans women and completely destroys their integrity. You can’t bring people from abroad to come and see the physiognomy of your people”, Lokodo said.

It is also worth mentioning that this Miss Curvy beauty pageant can damage Self Image.
Experience has shown that, for women, being accepted and attractive is important to them. No woman wants to parade herself in front of a crowd of people and judges, only to be told that she isn’t the prettiest, or the second, or third, or so on. This can deeply wound the self-image that women have for their entire life hence, damaging the self-image of the most ‘unfortunate’.

The discriminative nature of the Miss curvy pageant is one thing we cannot close our eyes from. The pageant seems to be more bent towards only those women with curves although the organizers say that it is open to all women. This should be a sugarcoated truth because the title of the pageant tells it all and above all, the photos being used to advertise this contest are those of curvy women. Hence, no body actually needs a second brain to know that the pageant is discriminative.

In reaction to this evil of discrimination, the executive director of Human Rights Defenders Uganda said “Miss Curvy contest is discriminative, degrading and a shameful to the country's culture and heritage”, Gedion Tugume speaks out, adding that it should be cancelled out by the magistrates.

Having exposed all these vises of the Miss curvy beauty pageant nevertheless, I would be acting in sheer blindness and prejudice if I don’t point out some positive points hidden therein:

It is a good thing to know that the curvy pageant can in a way encourage self-confidence.
The modern beauty pageant does more than celebrate outward beauty for the women who compete in them. They encourage personal self-confidence, wanting competitors to get to know their true selves.

You must therefore be authentic to be successful in today’s world. Pretending to be someone or something you’re not does create an impassable ceiling that limits success. Getting to know the “real you” allows competitors to pursue whatever opportunities they wish in life – whether they win the pageant or not.

More to the above, its away of appreciating beauty as a natural endowment of God. And so, acknowledging and celebrating it in bona fide causes no harm after all, every creature is unique in their own ways. For this, we must all be happy and give this natural endowment the praise and honor it deserves. It would only be undesirable if the pageant takes a different trend as some of the views already attest.

There is no doubt that this Miss curvy pageant can create a big opportunity in the field of tourism. This can be possible as the Central Executive Officer of the pageant Ms. Mungoma said, by providing a platform for curvaceous women to compete, the winner of Miss Curvy Uganda will have the opportunity to participate in Miss Curvy Africa and finally Miss Curvy World, just as Quinn Abenakyo made Uganda proud by participating in the just concluded Miss World beauty contest.

The CEO added that if a Ugandan participant wins the Miss Curvy World contest, this will help promote the country’s image and get the world to know Uganda more.  If this dream comes true, it’s well and good.

Another truth that cannot be denied is that this Miss Curvy pageant can promote cultural coexistence. It is in order to say that culturally, we are endowed differently and we need to appreciate this. As the CEO said “All the way from West Nile down to Southern Uganda, we have naturally endowed women. We need to tell the story about the cultures where these women come from. That is how we shall market our country,” she said, adding that it will also promote cultural endowment.

Finally, when all is done and said, the one truth that remains is that although Miss Curvy beauty pageant throws some positive coins into the bargain including the promotion of tourism, it would only be barbaric, humiliating, dehumanizing, archaic, disingenuous, and perhaps preposterous to use the bodies of women as commodities and objects to boost tourism in the country. This would only sexualize them and make them less human.  Women must be allowed to be women with their dignity intact.

NKOZI ROAD ACCIDENT

NKOZI ROAD ACCIDENT

By Lawrence Sunday Ogwang

Today Monday 11th March 2019 at around 5:30 pm, a fatal motor accident involving a boda-boda man and a secondary school student of Kayabwe Secondary School occurred just opposite Canaan hostel in Nkozi along the main road.

The boda-boda man who was apparently riding at breakneck speed from Kayabwe heading towards Uganda Martyrs University, knocked down a secondary school student who has only been identified as Mariam with the help of a bystander at the scene who claimed knowledge of the student.

A boda-boda man in a pool of blood

According to the eyewitnesses, the boda-boda man knocked the girl from behind, throwing her off balance into the ditch leaving her with a badly cut head and damaged hips. The aforesaid damage could easily be seen as the blood kept oozing out both from the head and the hips.

Meanwhile, the boda-boda man and his motorcycle registration number UEP 970Z reportedly rolled several times on the road before it could stop leaving him lying unconscious in a pool of blood. “The Motorcycle rolled several times together with him and just rested on him”, an eye witness reported.

The two victims were immediately however under critical conditions rushed to St. Mary’s hospital Nkozi for medical assistance.

 Efforts to establish the identity of the boda-boda man by press time was futile since everybody around claimed ignorance of the man.

The eyewitnesses who saw the accident take place expressed their concern on how the boda-boda men and the drivers are carelessly using the road adding that if nothing is done to moderate the speed people are using on this road, more fatal accidents would occur.

“With all these speeds, we who reside near the road are at risk of losing everything including our children to these careless riders and drivers” an eye witness commented.