Unprecedented Legal Measures in the Wake of Corona Virus: The Ugandan Perspective

Abstract

The Corona Pandemic is one of the problems whichcontinues to affect the globe as the death tolls and thenumbers of infected people keep increasing. It is against thisbackdrop that States have evoked Public Health Law as ameasure of protecting their citizens. In light of the above, thisarticle examines International, Regional and Ugandan PublicHealth regimes in the fight against COVID-19. In order tocontrol the spread of the Corona virus the government ofUganda introduced measures such as lockdowns restriction ofmovement, curfew and closing borders, bars, shopping mallsand non-food markets. Enforcement of these measures andlaws has been characterized by violence, brutality andexcessive use of force from police and other security agencies.This has raised a lot of debate about the protection of humanrights in the wake of the COVID 19. The article also examinesthe impact of such measures on human rights and seeks toassess their justification. The article underscores the fact thatderogation from human rights during public health emergenciesshould be guided by the international and regional human rightsregimes to which Uganda is a party. The article thus discussesthe international and regional human rights instruments inrelation to public health law and underscores the need to strikea balance in order to respect human rights.Key Words: Corona virus, COVID 19, derogation, epidemic,human rights, infectious diseases, international humanrights instruments, limitations, pandemic, restrictions.