Barefoot lawyers in Uganda

Community volunteers collect their bicycles so they can start work

Over a million children in Uganda have been left orphaned by AIDS. Many have nursed one or both parents through illness and have witnessed their deaths and are left vulnerable and alone, caring for brothers and sisters, taking on whatever jobs they can find to earn enough to buy food. They have no opportunity to attend school and little hope for the future.

Women and children are often not aware of their legal rights and can not speak up in their own defence, which makes them powerless and vulnerable. The problem is aggravated by a lack of appropriate support services and a lack of knowledge about legal and institutional mechanisms for their protection.  It is bad enough to suffer the grief and trauma of losing a parent or partner, but in addition many women and children are victims of property grabbing, finding themselves homeless, driven out of their house by relatives who seize the family land and possessions.

This project aims to raise awareness of legal rights and to encourage people to have an open dialogue on how traditional practices work against the interests of women and children in particular – for example, writing wills in rural Uganda is rare largely because talking about someone’s impending death is considered taboo. 

The Achievements

This is a long-term project, which will continue to support those affected by HIV/AIDS for many years to come. However, achievements over just one 12-month period clearly demonstrate its success:

• 70 community volunteers were trained in basic law, and now travel around communities serving as paralegal officers.
• In just one year the Legal Aid Centres dealt with 694 disputes relating to land, property, domestic violence, threats of violence, custody of children and theft. Several inheritance and succession cases have already been successfully concluded, with widows receiving their property back from relatives who had grabbed it.
• 52 FIDA members were trained in areas of law relating to HIV/AIDS and in the skills needed to run community legal awareness sessions.
• 88 community legal awareness sessions were held, involving 6,743 people. As a result, levels of understanding of the law have been raised, and the number of rights abuses of people affected by HIV/AIDS has declined. In particular, the number of complaints relating to property inheritance has fallen dramatically.
• Over 9,000 books, leaflets and posters were distributed, to provide advice and information for community members, volunteers and local law enforcement officers on everything from inheritance law and writing a will to the procedures of the Family and Children's Court.
• Radio has also been used to raise wider awareness. 13 programmes were aired on Rock Mambo Radio, tackling will writing, marriage, divorce, inheritance, succession, domestic violence, children's rights, women's rights, parental responsibilities, and the role of local council authorities.

The Future

When tackling HIV/AIDS the ultimate goal must be to reduce the number of people bereaved or infected. Plan's commitment to building local respect for the rights of vulnerable widows and orphans goes hand-in-hand with raising awareness of the dangers of HIV and offering sexual health information, as well as providing health care, counselling and support for those living with the disease.

In 33 schools, Plan has helped set up a scheme to provide children with information about legal rights and sexual health, and to enable them to raise issues that concern them. Meetings have also been held with local leaders and authorities to develop ways for them to work together to assist those affected by HIV/AIDS. These meetings have also encouraged local ownership of the project, to ensure it can be maintained even without Plan's support.

Community members are being encouraged to involve children in development issues, and the children have been encouraged to assert themselves, work hard, aim for a better life, and become responsible citizens and leaders. It is children who, ultimately, can provide a brighter future for Uganda. Thank you for your support.