It was edited by Bronwen Manby, deputy director of the Africa division. Contributions were also made by Colin Relihan, associate in the Africa division, Andrea Holley and Fitzroy Hepkins, mail manager, provided production assistance. Habeas corpus -the "great writ" of English common law, Latin for "you have the body.
It was used historically to prevent the King from jailing enemies without cause. The use of torture as a tool of interrogation is foremost among an escalation in human rights violations by Ugandan security and military forces since These abuses are not acknowledged by the Ugandan government that instead fosters an enabling climate in which such human rights abuses persist and increase while perpetrators of torture, rather than be held accountable, act with impunity.
Forms of torture in use in Uganda include kandoya tying hands and feet behind the victim and suspension from the ceiling of victims tied kandoya, "Liverpool" water torture forcing the victim to lie face up, mouth open, under a flowing water spigot , severe and repeated beatings with metal or wooden poles, cables, hammers and sticks with nails protruding, pistol-whipping, electrocution, male and female genital and body mutilation, death threats through showing fresh graves, corpses and snakes , strangulation, restraint, isolation, and verbal abuse and humiliation.
Some of these practices have resulted in the death of detainees in custody. Most victims of illegal detention and torture attribute their treatment to political suppression, reporting that security or military agents accused them of past or current political opposition, insurrection or support for rebel groups, treason or terrorism, or of knowing persons involved in such activities. Others report they were accused of having engaged in or witnessed criminal activity such as murder or robbery, while some link their abuse to personal disputes and vendettas by officials.
Under Ugandan criminal law, only the police are authorized to detain a suspect, who within forty-eight hours must be transferred to the jurisdiction of the criminal court to be charged, or released. The constitution requires military, security and intelligence agencies to promptly turn suspects over to police for detention.
