killing four children<\/a><\/span> began on Monday in a tent not far from where the crime was committed, after the president ordered a mobile court session that could be attended by locals. <\/p>\nIt is the first test of the country\u2019s controversial mobile court sessions intended to allow people to directly follow cases that draw widespread public interest.<\/p>\n
The suspect, Christopher Okello Onyum, is accused of killing the children in a machete attack inside a nursery school in a suburb of the Ugandan capital of Kampala on April 2. The motive remains unclear in the incident that shocked many in this East African country.<\/p>\n
Onyum on Monday pleaded not guilty to four counts of murder. <\/p>\n
Witnesses said the attacker targeted a nursery school known as Gaba Early Childhood Development Program by disguising himself as a parent. He is said to have briefly talked to administrators there before locking the gate and then attacking the children. <\/p>\n
An angry crowd later tried to lynch Onyum, who was rescued and taken into custody by police. He could face the death penalty if convicted.<\/p>\n
President Yoweri Museveni\u2019s order to have the case tried quickly and in the very public setting of a mobile court has proved controversial, with some critics saying it threatens to sensationalize a matter of obvious pain for the bereaved while also interfering with justice.<\/p>\n
In a statement, the Uganda Law Society said the president\u2019s directive amounted to executive interference and undermined the suspect\u2019s right to a fair trial.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not justice,\u201d the society said in a statement. \u201cIt\u2019s a judicial lynching rally.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hundreds of people gathered for the trial, which was being held in a large tent erected in the grounds of a church.<\/p>\n
This is the first time mobile courts are being put into practice after a legal notice with formal directives for their operations were published in March. <\/p>\n
The judiciary defended the decision, saying it highlighted its \u201ccommitment to taking justice closer to the people through innovative approaches.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n