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Representatives of the\r\nfive East African member state judiciaries met in Kampala to\r\namong others undergo training with a keen eye of attaining an effective ongoing\r\nEast African integration.
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While officially opening\r\nthe three-day workshop at Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala, Acting Chief\r\nJustice of Uganda Hon. Justice Steven Kavuma; observed that given the current\r\ntrends towards the region integration in various parts of the world, the East\r\nAfrican region has no option but to integrate.
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He added that the third\r\narm of their respective states have to play very critical roles of nurturing\r\npeace that will lead to stability and creation of wealth in the region.
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"The issue of the\r\nEast African integration is as critical as it is important to all the citizens\r\nof the East African Community (EAC). This therefore, means that everybody\r\nincluding institutions such as the national judiciaries are stake holders in\r\nthe process and have an important role to play in fostering, furthering,\r\ndeepening and widening the integration” said Justice Kavuma at the workshop.
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He added, " In\r\nattainment of all the above, the national judiciaries play a central role by\r\nway of adjudication of disputes and provision of a conducive judicial environment\r\nnecessary for the achievement of holistic development”
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Hon. Justice Kavuma\r\nfurther defined regional integration as the process by which two or more states\r\nagree to cooperate and work closely to achieve peace, stability and wealth.
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He said this can be\r\nattained when national judiciaries play their role in nurturing peace,\r\nstability and in the creation of wealth, mainly by delivering "a public\r\ngood called justice”.
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This is enshrined in the\r\nconstitutions of all East African States, and drawing from this mandate,\r\nArticle 126 of the East African Treaty provides for the legal and judicial\r\naffairs for the member states to enable them achieve the objectives of the\r\ncommunity by harmonizing their legal training.
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Further responsibilities\r\nof the members states that include; Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi\r\nare; to harmonize all national laws in the community and to establish a common\r\nsyllabus for the training of lawyers and common standard to be attained in\r\nexaminations in order to qualify and to be licensed to practice as an advocate\r\nI their respective superior courts.
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The other responsibility\r\nis to revive the publication of the East African Law reports or publish similar\r\nlaw reports and such law journals to promote the exchange of legal and judicial\r\nknowledge.
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After years in the\r\nshadows, Hon. Justice Kavuma explained to participants the crucial role\r\nnational courts play in referring to the East Africa Court of Justice, matters\r\nbefore them that require interpretation of the Treaty.
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This is proof that\r\ncourts play an important role in the harmonization of laws and legal principles\r\nwhich are central to integration.
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The Chief Justice also\r\nurged participants to address the challenges facing the judiciaries in the\r\nregion. Among these, he noted the threat of judicial independence\r\nwhich has caused the regional judiciaries to be ranked as average by global\r\nstandards that measure judicial independence in the world.
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The sidelining of\r\njudiciaries in the integration process as well as the inadequate human resource\r\nthat leads to case backlog.
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Hon. Justice Kavuma\r\nurged national judiciaries to incorporate the study of the integration process\r\nin their curricula for continuous legal training of judicial officers. He also\r\nadvised partner states to speed up the harmonization of laws as well as the\r\nexpansion of the jurisdiction of the East African Court of Justice.
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The East African\r\nCommunity was established by the East African Community Treaty which was signed\r\nby the initial partner states of Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania on November 30,\r\n1999. However, the treaty came into force on July 7, 2000 and the initial three\r\ncountries were later joined by Rwanda and Burundi after the membership was\r\nexpanded to five States.
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The contracting parties\r\nwere determined to strengthen their economic, social, cultural, political,\r\ntechnological and other ties for their best balanced and sustainable\r\ndevelopment.
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Posted 3rd, July 2014
