news 1 May 2026 Daily Monitor (Uganda)
Uganda's Death Penalty: Recent Sentencing Revives Debate on Executions
A court has sentenced Christopher Okello Onyum to death for killing four toddlers at a Kampala daycare, marking the first such civilian case since 1999 amid Uganda's de facto abolition. Prison records indicate 377 hangings since 1938, with about 145 inmates currently on death row. Source: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/death-sentence-in-uganda-explained-5444008
Uganda maintains the death penalty despite not carrying out civilian executions since 1999. Justice Alice Komuhangi Khaukha recently sentenced Christopher Okello Onyu to hang for murdering four children at a Ggaba daycare in Kampala. This ruling spotlights President Museveni’s stance, who has affirmed support for capital punishment in serious cases like murder.
The Supreme Court abolished mandatory death sentences in 2009 and ordered commutation for those lingering over three years on death row. This benefited figures like former Tooro Kingdom premier John Sanyu Katuramu, convicted of murder financing. Okello’s sentence could similarly convert to life imprisonment after three years or via presidential pardon.
Hanging remains the method for civilians, a holdover from colonial times. Records show 377 legal hangings since 1938, including 51 under Museveni, mostly in a 1999 mass execution of 28 inmates. High-profile cases include UPC chairman Musa Sebirumbi, hanged after a decade on death row for 1981 murders.
Death row numbers have plummeted from over 1,000 in 1999 to around 145 by late 2023. Uganda abstained from a 2014 UN moratorium vote, positioning it as a reluctant retainer of the penalty.
Source: Daily Monitor (Uganda)