A Ugandan court has ordered a US couple charged with torturing their foster child. They have subsequently been ordered to pay him $26,000 (Ksh 3,891,134.00) as compensation.
The compensation resulted from a plea deal, which also led to the court dropping the charges of aggravated trafficking and torture against the couple. This charge could have seen them receive life imprisonment or the death penalty.
This is after the child’s nanny filed a police report against the couple. In the charges, the nanny alleged that the couple repeatedly subjected the child to inhumane treatment
On Tuesday, they pleaded guilty to the charges of cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment. They also pleaded guilty to working without permits and staying in Uganda unlawfully, for which they were fined 4.86m Ugandan shillings (Ksh 191,469).
But the Tuesday ruling has angered child rights activists who termed it “a mockery of justice”.
Activist Proscovia Najjumba questioned how the court allowed the couple to “walk away” after accepting they “mistreated a child”, the AFP news agency reported.
Court documents showed that the couple served the child cold food several times. They also made him sleep on a bare wooden platform without bedding.
The couple was also accused of forcing the child to squat “in an awkward position”.
