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 AFROL
Gender Profiles:
Uganda
Uganda, despite its rich pre-colonial history, has had a turbulent and tragic
history since independence - Idi Amin, Milto Obote and ethnical conflicts being
some reminders. Under Yoweri Museveni (President since 1986), Uganda has found
some stability, but there is still a war going on in the northern provinces,
claiming many civil victims. With the Central Government generally being
distanced from the people, traditional practices and laws remain the norm in
Ugandan society, mostly to the disadvantage to women's rights. General poverty
and armed conflict also contribute to the troubled situation of Ugandan women.
Violence against women, including rape, remains common. Wife beating
is viewed as a husband's prerogative. Delays in bringing capital offense cases to trial in situations, where a husband killed his wife,
remains common.
Child abuse remains a serious problem, particularly the rape of young girls (known locally as "defilement").
While defilement carries a maximum sentence of death, that punishment has never been meted out to a convicted rapist.
An undetermined number of women were victims of abduction and rape by rebel forces. In past years, the LRA
rebels/terrorists also reportedly sold and traded
children, mostly girls, or provided them as gifts to arms dealers in Sudan.
Women may not own or inherit property, nor retain custody of their children under local customary law.
Polygyny is legal under both customary and Islamic law, and a wife has no legal status to prevent her husband from marrying another woman. Men also may "inherit" the widows of their deceased brothers. The proportion of girls in higher school grades remains low since families traditionally
favour boys when making financially related educational decisions.
The marriage of young girls by parental arrangement is common, especially in rural areas.
Females of the Sabiny tribe are subjected to
the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).
Women in Uganda averagely give birth to 6,96 children (2000 est.)
Social data
Life expectancy: Total population: 42,93 years
male: 42,22 years
female: 43,67 years (2000 est.)
Infant mortality: 93,25 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Alphabetization rate: Total population: 61,8%
male: 73,7%
female: 50,2% (1995 est.)
Medical services: 71% of the population have access to medical
services. There are approximately 25.000 persons per doctor.
Sex ratio: at birth: 1,03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1,01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0,92 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Religious data: Traditional African religions 32,06%, Muslim
4,48%, Christians 63,46%.
Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2000 est.)
Family and tradition
Traditional and widespread societal discrimination against women continued, especially in rural areas, despite constitutional provisions to the contrary. Many customary laws discriminate against women in the areas of adoption, marriage, divorce, and inheritance. In most areas, women may not own or inherit property, nor retain custody of their children under local customary law. Divorce law sets stricter evidentiary standards for women to prove adultery. Polygyny is legal under both customary and Islamic law, and a wife has no legal status to prevent her husband from marrying another woman. Men also may "inherit" the widows of their deceased brothers. Women do most of the agricultural work but own only 7 percent of the agricultural land. There are limits on a married woman's ability to travel abroad with her children.
The marriage of young girls by parental arrangement is common, especially in rural areas.
The tradition of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), is practiced
by the Sabiny tribe, located in the highly rural Kapchorwa district in the
east. Among the Sabiny, initiation ceremonies involving FGM have been carried out every 2 years for girls between the ages of 14 and 16 years.
Gender sensitivity in society
There are active women's rights groups, including FIDA, Action for Development, the National Association of Women Judges
(NAWJ), Akina Mama Wa Afrika, the Forum for Women in Democracy, and
NAWOU, which promote greater awareness of the rights of women and children. FIDA is in the 2nd year of a 3-year project to draft proposed reforms of outdated and discriminatory laws, and the NAWJ continued to disseminate its guidebook on women's rights and options concerning domestic violence to women throughout the country.
Unlike their male counterparts, female members of the police force are required to obtain permission from the police Inspector General before getting married.
The Universal Primary Education (UPE) program remains only partially implemented due to strained finances, instability in some areas, infrastructure problems, and inadequate teacher training. Although the UPE program makes education more accessible financially, parents still must pay for books, uniforms, and some school costs. Implementation of the UPE has caused some financial problems for the country's large, often polygynous families. Girls and boys theoretically have equal access to education, and lower grades are divided almost evenly by sex; however, the proportion of girls in higher school grades remains low since families traditionally have favored boys when making financially related educational decisions. Only 53 percent of females are literate compared with 61 percent of males. Parents' inability to afford schooling has correlated highly with the occurrence of child labor in rural areas.
Health data
Access to potable water: 54% of the population have no access to potable
water.
Medical services: 71% of the population have access to medical
services. There are approximately 25.000 persons per doctor.
Maternal mortality rate: 1.200/100.000.
Infant mortality: 93,25 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM): Females of the Sabiny tribe are
subjected to this practice.
Female genital mutilation, which is widely condemned by international health experts as damaging to both physical and psychological health, is practiced only by the Sabiny tribe, located in the highly rural Kapchorwa district in the east, whose members number fewer than
10.000. Among the Sabiny, initiation ceremonies involving FGM have been carried out every 2 years for girls between the ages of 14 and 16 years. Such a ceremony was held in 1998. An NGO based in Kapchorwa registered 965 females who were subjected to FGM in 1998, nearly double the figure that the Government reported in 1996. There is no law against the practice, but government and women's groups working with the U.N. Population Fund continue to carry out a program to combat the practice through education. The program has received strong government support and some support from local Kapchorwa leaders. The program emphasizes close cooperation with traditional authority figures and peer counseling. Significant press attention to these ongoing efforts brought public attention to the problem throughout the year.
Violence against women
Violence against women, including rape, remains common. There are no laws that specifically protect women from battery, although there is a general law concerning assault. The Government continued to implement the Children's Statute, which provides extensive protection for families and children; however, implementation proved exceedingly difficult due to manpower and judicial constraints, and in reality, little was done to enforce the statute's provisions. Law enforcement officials, reflecting general public opinion, continued to view wife beating as a husband's prerogative and rarely intervened in cases of domestic violence. Women remained more likely to sue for divorce than to file assault charges against their husbands. These problems received growing public attention. Numerous women's rights NGO's sponsored conferences, empowerment sessions, and training programs throughout the country. In a prominent 1997 case in which an Asian woman, Renu Joshi, allegedly was murdered by her relatives, including her husband, court proceedings had not concluded by year's end. Her husband (the principal defendant), remained on remand awaiting trial at year's end. Public protests were instrumental in keeping him in remand. Delays in bringing capital offense cases to trial in situations where a husband killed his wife
remains common.
An undetermined number of women were victims of abduction and rape by rebel forces.
Unconfirmed reports state that UPDF mobile forces regularly beat civilians and raped women.
The ADF and LRA rebels/terrorists, led by Joseph Kony, abducted many children, using them as guards, laborers, soldiers, and, in the case of the LRA, for forced sex.
Both the ADF and the LRA abducted civilians who were terrorized into virtual slavery as guards, laborers, soldiers, and, in the case of the LRA, as sex slaves. In addition to being beaten, raped, and forced to march until exhausted, children abducted by the LRA were forced to participate in the killing of other children who attempted to escape. As many as
5.000 Ugandan children abducted by the LRA were held in the southern part of Sudan: The Government of Sudan actively supports the LRA. In past years, the LRA also reportedly sold and traded some children, mostly girls, or provided them as gifts to arms dealers in Sudan.
Child abuse remained a serious problem, particularly the rape of young girls (known locally as "defilement"). Only a small fraction of these incidents is reported, especially when the perpetrator is a family member, neighbor, or teacher--as is often the case. Increasing numbers of accusations reach the courts, although neither conviction nor punishment
are common. Cases are reported frequently in newspapers, but a payment to the girl's parents often ended the matter. Despite these obstacles, an increasing number of cases are being prosecuted. While defilement carries a maximum sentence of death, that punishment has never been meted out to a convicted rapist. Defilement applies to all cases of sexual contact outside of marriage involving girls younger than 18 years of age, regardless of consent or the age of the perpetrator. The marriage of young girls by parental arrangement is common, especially in rural areas.
Main sources: U.S. Department of State, CIA,
Mundo negro
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