The Court of Appeal has suspended the conviction and 30-year jail sentences of two civilians previously tried for murder and aggravated robbery by the General Court Martial, citing serious constitutional concerns over their trial. The court also ordered that their case be reviewed or retried in a competent civilian court. The decision, delivered on Monday by justices Geoffrey Kiryabwire, Ketrah Kitariisibwa Katunguka, and Cornelia Kakooza Sabiiti, arose from Criminal Appeal No. 0380 of 2023 filed by Matia Kiiza Bukenya and Derrick Jumba against the state. Bukenya and Jumba were convicted by the General Court Martial at Makindye for a violent robbery at Moses K. Hardware in Masaka Municipality on July 1, 2018, during which two people were killed, and cash and a sub-machine gun were stolen. Initially sentenced to 40 years, their term was later reduced to 30 years by the Court Martial Appeal court. Through their lawyer Henry Kunya, the appellants argued that the military court lacked jurisdiction to try civilians, denied them a fair hearing, and imposed an illegal sentence. The state opposed the appeal, arguing that the Court of Appeal lacked authority to hear it under the UPDF Act. The Court of Appeal emphasized that jurisdiction is fundamental for any court to hear a case. Citing last year’s Supreme court ruling in Attorney General v. Michael Kabaziguruka, which declared civilian trials by the General Court Martial unconstitutional, the justices concluded that the trial of Bukenya and Jumba raised serious constitutional issues. Guided by Supreme court precedent, the Court of Appeal suspended the convictions and sentences and directed that the matter be referred to a civilian court for review or retrial. Bukenya and Jumba will remain in prison pending the fresh determination.The case follows wider reforms after the Supreme court ruled in January 2025 that civilians cannot be tried in military courts due to inadequate legal safeguards. Amendments to the UPDF Act later allowed limited trials of civilians jointly charged with soldiers under strict conditions, a measure currently under constitutional scrutiny by political figures, including Dr Kizza Besigye. The post Court of Appeal suspends murder convictions of civilians tried by Army court appeared first on The Observer.