President Museveni has enacted the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) Amendment Bill 2025, expanding military courts’ authority to try civilians under specified circumstances.
Opposition leaders and human rights groups have condemned the move, pledging to challenge the law in court for undermining constitutional protections.
The recently passed law grants military tribunals jurisdiction to try civilians accused of possessing military equipment or collaborating with soldiers in serious crimes such as treason or murder.
Advocates qualified at the High Court level will now be appointed as judges to the General Court Martial.
Opposition leader Joel Ssenyonyi condemned the law as “rushed and draconian,” calling it an attempt to “legitimize illegitimacy.”
Human rights organizations warn that it risks suppressing dissent and weakening judicial independence, especially after the Supreme Court recently ruled that trying civilians in military courts is unconstitutional.
Despite opposition boycott, the ruling National Resistance Movement used its parliamentary majority to push the bill through, igniting fears of shrinking democratic space in Uganda.
