Wakilii

Musoke Joseph v Attorney General [2018] UGHRC 64

Tribunal · 2018 Complaint Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Human rights complaint before the Uganda Human Rights Commission Tribunal alleging violation of right to health and right to life arising from medical negligence at Masaka Regional Referral Hospital
Decision
Complaint allowed with compensation and exemplary damages awarded to the estate of the deceased mother and child

Observed later treatment

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Holding

The Tribunal held that medical personnel at Masaka Regional Referral Hospital violated the right to health and right to life of Bagerusa Joyce and her unborn child by failing to provide timely emergency obstetric care. The deceased was left unattended for hours despite being referred as a complicated case, resulting in the death of both mother and child. The Attorney General was held vicariously liable. The Tribunal awarded compensation totalling UGX 30,000,000 to the estate of the deceased for violation of the right to life of both mother and child, plus exemplary damages of UGX 10,000,000 against Masaka Regional Referral Hospital for violation of the right to health.

Outcome

Complaint allowed with compensation and exemplary damages awarded to the estate of the deceased mother and child

Facts

On 7 May 2013, Bagerusa Joyce, aged 27, was admitted to Masaka Regional Referral Hospital maternity ward after being referred from Sembabule Health Centre IV due to complications with her pregnancy. Upon arrival, she was placed in an empty room on the floor due to lack of beds. Despite being in labour and experiencing severe contractions, medical personnel repeatedly failed to attend to her over several hours. When the complainant (her father) sought assistance, health workers stated they were tired and that she was not the first patient to deliver. Bagerusa eventually delivered alone, and the baby was stillborn. She continued bleeding profusely without medical intervention. When nurses finally attended, they instructed the complainant to leave the room. Shortly after, Bagerusa fell from the bed while shivering, was placed back, and died approximately four minutes later. She left behind one surviving child. The complainant reported the matter to police and the Resident District Commissioner before filing a complaint with the Uganda Human Rights Commission.

Issues

  1. Whether the victim's right to health was violated by the Respondent's agents.
  2. Whether the victims' (mother and child) right to life was violated by the Respondent's agents.
  3. Whether the Complainant is entitled to any remedies.

Orders

  • The complaint is allowed.
  • Masaka Regional Referral Hospital is ordered to pay to the estate of the late Bagerusa Joyce exemplary damages of UGX 10,000,000 for the violation of her right to health and life.
  • The Respondent is ordered to pay to the estate of the late Bagerusa Joyce a sum of UGX 10,000,000 as compensation for the violation of Bagerusa Joyce's right to life.
  • The Respondent is further ordered to pay to the estate of the late Bagerusa Joyce a sum of UGX 10,000,000 as compensation for the violation of her child's right to life.
  • Interest at the rate of 10% per annum to be paid on the total amount of UGX 30,000,000 calculated from the date of this decision until payment in full.
  • Each party to meet their own costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Human Rights — Right to Health — Maternal Health Care — State Obligation to Provide Emergency Obstetric Services
The right to health includes the entitlement to an effective and integrated health system encompassing health care and underlying determinants of health. Article 33(3) of the Constitution recognizes the need to protect maternal functions of women including reproduction, thereby implicitly placing obligations upon the state to protect the sexual and reproductive health rights of women. The state must ensure that women's rights to safe motherhood and emergency obstetric services are respected and must allocate resources to maternal health services.
Human Rights — Right to Life — Unborn Child — Legal Protection
Article 22(2) of the Constitution preserves the unborn child's right to life. An unborn child has legal rights and is entitled to protection. By the time an expectant mother is due for delivery at nine months, the child is entitled to special protection before and after birth as provided in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. No person is authorized to terminate the child's life in whatever circumstance unless permitted by law.
Human Rights — Interdependence of Rights — Right to Health and Right to Life
Human rights are interdependent, indivisible and interrelated. Violation of the right to health through non-provision of basic maternal health care and non-attendance by health workers can lead to violation of the right to life. Denial of emergency medical treatment for serious conditions violates the right to life, and the state cannot abdicate its responsibility to provide such care by pleading financial constraints.
Tort Law — Vicarious Liability — Medical Negligence — Course of Employment
An act is within the course of employment if it is either a wrongful act authorized by the employer, or a wrongful and unauthorized mode of doing some act authorized by the employer. Even if a servant is acting deliberately, wrongfully, negligently or criminally, if what he did was in the manner of carrying out what he was employed to carry out, then his acts are those for which the master is to be held liable. The Attorney General is liable on behalf of government agents for violations of human rights committed by medical personnel in the course of their duties.
Damages & Quantum — Compensation for Violation of Right to Life — Assessment Principles
Compensation payable when the right to life is violated is primarily for the very act of violating the right to life. Any proof of loss of dependency is an additional consideration to be taken into account when assessing damages. The compensation payable is for the benefit of the estate of the deceased. The right to life is a sine qua non for the enjoyment of other human rights, and although not absolute, its infringement is only sanctioned under legally permissible circumstances.
Damages & Quantum — Exemplary Damages — Oppressive Conduct by State Agents
Exemplary damages may be awarded to victims in cases where agents of the state have conducted themselves in an oppressive, arbitrary or unconstitutional manner. Where medical workers responsible for acts constituting violation of human rights are state employees, exemplary damages can be awarded against the institution employing them.
Constitutional Law — Burden of Proof — Admission by Failure to Defend
Contentious issues in a case are deemed admitted where a defendant does not call evidence in rebuttal. Where a respondent does not appear for defence despite several adjournments, the respondent is taken to have voluntarily waived their right to defend and to have admitted the allegations.

Legislation cited (9)

Cases cited (6)

  • Edeku v Attorney General (1995) XI KALR 24
  • PASCHIM BANGA KHET MAZDOOR SANITY AND OTHERS Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL AND ANOR,(1966) AIRSC 246
  • JONES Vs TOWER BOOTS CO. LTD, (1997), ALL ER 40B
  • Muwonge v Attorney General (1967) EA 17
  • Juman Abukoji v Attorney General (UHRC Complaint No. UHRC/G/326/1999)
  • Kanyike v Attorney General (Civil Case No. 196 of 1967)

Full judgment

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Musoke Joseph v Attorney General 2018 UGHRC 64 (27 March 2018)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.