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DIV4/6: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE LAW AND MORALITY

This Unit is about the relationship between the law and morality.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE LAW AND MORALITY

The term morality means having good behavior as defined by the church law customs or following the state order.

The law and morality have to a greater extent a big link/ relationship as noted below;

  • The laws governing a particular society a usually intended to enforce moral values to the people. So whoever respects the laws of the state is automatically believed to be morally upright.  For instance the law prohibits acts like cheating, bribery, corruption, forgery and prostitution.  So anyone who obeys such laws is said to be moral.
  • Both the law and morality define what is good and what is bad. Therefore what is accepted by the law is also accepted by morality and the reverse is true.  For instance women who wear mini skirts and kundi shows are often condemned as indecent clothing by moralists and even the law defines them as being idle and disorderly and can be penalized.
  • Both the law and morality have some aim. They aim at creating order stability and harmony in society.  Laws are put in place to create order and social harmony, of such harmony exists, then there is morality in the society.
  • In societies where there is a high sense of morality people properly living by the expected standards, there is no need to put up strict laws. For instance in monasteries its hard to find there laws prohibiting sexual immoralities because automatically known that priests or nuns do not marry.
  • The laws of the country usually reflect people’s wishes, aspirations and cultural values. So these constitute morality. For instance in Uganda the laws prohibit sexual immoralities like prostitution, homosexuality, lesbianism and adultery. Those caught engaging in them may be by law penalized.

However to a smaller extent, morality and law may conflict in the following ways;

  • The law may protect what is socially unacceptable and immoral. For instance in the United States of America, sexual immorality like abortion and prostitution are legally accepted.  This is however considered unacceptable and immoral by the moralists.
  • Some laws do not echo/ reflect people’s aspirations and wishes but reflect only the wishes of those in power. Such laws are oppressive and suppressive and so not in line with morality.  For instance in Uganda the opposition politicians are not allowed to hold rallies before notifying the police station in the nearby locality.
  • The law and morality sometimes conflict in that the law at times declares some things as bad and unacceptable. For example in the Afghanistan women doctors and nurses were prohibited from practicing medicine and only required by law to be at home caring for their husbands.  Similarly in the Arab world its by order that women have to veil themselves when moving in public.
  • The ways sometimes used to enforce the laws are harsh which makes some people become rebellious and behave immorally.  For instance the KCCA laws over payment of taxes by tax drivers has resulted into several riots in Kampala.

THE ROLE OF THE STATE IN ACHIEVING THE AIMS OF PUNISHMENTS

The state has to play a vital role in achieving the objectives or aims of punishing criminal.

  • The state is supposed to carryout immediate arrests of the suspects once a crime has been reported. Once the state unit the police does so, the victims may not face mob justice.  For example former Vice president of Uganda Honourable Gilbert Bukenya was arrested and jailed tried in courts of law because of misusing CHOGHM 2007 funds.
  • The state has to carry out clear investigations to collect substantial evidence against the suspects so as to pay for fine for the crime committed. For instance the state sent forensic experts to Kanungu to collect evidence to rely on for prosecution of Joseph Kibwetere who massively murdered over 1000 followers in 2000.
  • The state is mandated with a duty of organizing prosecution charges upon. For instance Richard Arinaitwe a known serial killer was charged with several courts of murder and attempting to strangle a high court judge who tried him.  Even Chandi Jamwa was prosecuted in courts of law because of misappropriating NSSF funds.
  • The state always endeavours to ensure the suspect is given a fair trial and that a miscarriage of justice does not occur. In other words the suspect should be penalized in accordance to the law.
  • The state plays a role of sentencing a criminal to the harshest punishment if he is a hard core criminal and a repeated offender especially those convicted of treason. For instance the government of Uganda convicted colonel Besigye at Luzira prison for sometime on charges of treason.  Even in Rwanda perpetuators of the 1994 genocide were severely tried.
  • At times, the state takes key witnesses to protection counters for protective custody so that with their assistance they may smash the criminal gangs and rid society of such criminals. For instance the United States wherever anybody agrees to testify in its defense against drug traffickers or terrorists cells in the country, always takes them away to unknown destinations (safe houses) for protective custody.
  • The state upon convicting the suspect takes in the place duty of imprisonment such people convicted are jailed at Luzira prison, Kigo prison or at Nalufeenya criminals arrested by operation wembly police squad.
  • The ultimate aim of punishment . That is to say, for reformation or transformation of the criminals back to a laws abiding citizen. In some cases the state rehabilitates the criminals by giving them life skills free of charge training.  For example at luzira prison some criminals are taught modern carpentry tailoring and general secondary school education skills.
  • Criminals confined in solitary place (jails) in many countries ar sometimes taught the laws so that when they come out, they can be law abiding citizens. For example when former mayor or Kampala Ssebagala Nasser Ntege was arrested in Boston on forgery of dollars, he was taught things like introduction to English, computer applications and aspects of the US law.
  • The state caries out monitoring of criminals to assess the degree of their rehabilitation and to stop them from being lynched by the common man. For example after releasing colonel Nasser from jail, the state kept an eye on him to prevent mob justice and see that he really reformed.
  • The state caries out public sensitization of the people in trouble areas to reduce tension and prevent any other riots for example when riots ocured in Kasese in 2016 led by Omusinga, he was arrested and jailed in Jinja and then the government UPDF took over control of the area.
  • In Kyenjojo, Hoima and Masindi districts the police took control of the area so as to reduce tension between the Banyoro and Bakiga over land conflicts.
  • The state ensures security between the offender and the offended. It does this through isolation of hard core criminals from mixing freely with petty criminals.  For example Luzira maximum prison the condemned prisoners are prohibited from associating freely with other inmates and have a cage to separate them permanently.
  • The state in developed societies sometimes convict the criminal sentence to a reduced period of prison sentence. If the criminal shows signs of reformation they may be conditionally set free for example president Y.K.M of Uganda released brigadier Moses Ali though he had been imprisoned on treason charges.

COMMON WAYS OF EXECUTION

Punishing criminals takes the following ways;

  • Hanging is one of the methods used to convict criminals. In this case the victim is put to death by hanging on the noose by the gallows.  It is common in U.S.A and Arab states like Afghanistan.  It was used by U.S.A to kill Bin Laden.

Lethal infection is a common method of executing criminals in United States. The criminal is put to death by injecting him/her with poisonous substance which eventually puts victim to death.

  • Firing squad is also used as a method of executing criminals. The victim is put to death by shooting bullets to him/her. It was common in Uganda during Idi Amin’s regime although even in this reign of president YKM it has been exercised especially carried out by the Wembly squad which fights serial criminals.
  • Electrocution is another method used to execute criminals. In this case the victim is forced to sit on an electronic hair.  His feet and arms are strapped and a very high power voltage is unleashed and then it kills the criminal instantly.
  • A victim may be executed by the method of beheading. In other words the head/ neck is hacked off.  The victims head is laterally cut off using a sharp instrument like Machate or sword.
  • Grassing though not common, is yet another method used to execute criminals. A person is enclosed/ confined into a room then a poisonous gas is flashed to him/ her such gas like Vx nerve gas and cyanide is used.
  • Some utilities execute victims through sending fierce animals that have been starved such as a lion, leopard, crocodile and alligator. The victim is forced to fight these animals until in most cases the victim is killed.  It was more common in the ancient Roman empire.
  • Marronment is used to execute victims. He/she is put to death by being abandoned in a strange place like a forest and desert then the victim is left to starve to death.
  • In some cases punishment of a victim takes the form of drowning the culprit into deep water where he/she dies of suffocation. This was common with the Bakiga in African tradition when punishing a girl who engaged in fornication.  She would be pushed to River Rwizi.
  • Suffocation is a method used to execute criminals. Here a victim is confined in some place where all oxygen is sacked out and then more caborndioxide is pumped into such a room and eventually he died instantly.
  • Wall crushing is a method used to execute victims. The victim is placed behind a wall which is then crushed –torn down by a bull dozer.  It was used in Afghanistan by the Taliban to destroy homosexuals.
  • Stoning a victim to death is also a common method used by people. It is similar to mob justice.  However it is still common in Arab states who follows the Sharia law for example Saudi Arabia and Nigeria and Afghanistan.
 

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