The Principal Judge, Lady Justice Jane Frances Abodo, has challenged women judges to use their leadership positions to advance access to justice, mentor young legal professionals, and champion gender equality across Uganda.
Abodo made the remarks during the handover ceremony of the executive leadership of the International Association of Women Judges-Uganda Chapter (IAWJ-UC), held over the weekend at the Supreme Court Conference Hall in Kampala.
The ceremony marked the official transition of leadership from Justice Jane Elizabeth Alividza to Justice Olive Kazaarwe Mukwaya, who assumes office as President of the Association for the next term.
Speaking at the event, Lady Justice Abodo commended the outgoing executive for laying a strong foundation for the association. She urged the incoming leadership to build on the gains already achieved. She described leadership as both a duty and a challenge that demands wisdom, discipline, commitment, and vision.
Abodo also pledged continued support from the Judiciary leadership for the association’s activities, emphasising that IAWJ-UC’s work should extend beyond Kampala to reach communities across the country.
She further encouraged women in leadership to believe in their abilities and challenge stereotypes that often force women to work harder to prove their competence. “As females, when you get into leadership positions, you first have to work so hard to prove yourself. We should change this narrative so that people are trusted because they are capable, not because they are male or female,” she added.
Lady Justice Abodo expressed confidence in the incoming President, Justice Olive Kazaarwe Mukwaya, saying the new executive enjoys the full support of the Judiciary leadership and the outgoing team. She underscored the importance of mentoring young lawyers and judicial officers, especially at a time when the number of law graduates in Uganda continues to grow rapidly.
“In our time, we were only 60 students at the Law Development Centre, but now the numbers are in the thousands. We must guide and mentor the young people entering the profession,” she said.
In her acceptance, Justice Olive Kazaarwe outlined key priorities for her leadership, including strengthening gender-responsive adjudication training for judicial officers, expanding school outreach programmes, and deepening partnerships to support vulnerable women and children.
She said the association has been training magistrates and judges to apply a gender-sensitive lens in judicial decision-making to improve access to justice for marginalised groups and survivors of discrimination and abuse.
She revealed that the association has already carried out outreach programmes in rural districts such as Luwero and Sironko, targeting vulnerable children, particularly girls. “We go to schools to speak to girls and boys, understand their challenges, and identify cases of abuse or vulnerability where intervention may be needed,” she explained.
Justice Kazaarwe noted that while women judges may not directly provide all forms of assistance, the association plays an important role in linking vulnerable groups to relevant institutions and government agencies for support. She added that the association plans to expand its engagements to universities, workplaces, banks, and other institutions to create awareness on legal rights, abuse prevention, and women’s empowerment.
SOURCE: URN
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