Ian Scott Public Interest Internship Program - Osgoode Hall Law ...

Meghan Wilson, Osgoode Hall Law School, Class 2010
Recipient of funding through the Ian Scott Public Internship Program
Report: Foundation for Human Rights Initiative, Kampala, Uganda
The political riots following the elections in Kenya had me seeking out an internship with
an organization active in the advancement of civil and political rights in East Africa. We were told
about the Ian Scott Fellowship during my first week at Osgoode and I was excited about the
possibility of being able to take advantage of this great funding opportunity. I started by
researching possible host legal
organizations in the region over the internet
and narrowed down my options to those I
felt were involved in the most productive
work and who had hosted international
interns in the past. I contacted a number of
different NGOs, but I was the most
enthusiastic about the projects presented
by the Foundation for Human Rights
Initiative (FHRI) in Kampala, Uganda.
Through numerous correspondences, FHRI
and I were able to cooperatively establish
the terms of my proposed internship. With
the support of an Ian Scott Fellowship, I
was able to join FHRI’s Rights Monitoring and Advocacy team in their activities to advance civil
and political rights in Uganda.
My main project during my time at FHRI was to research and develop a progress report
on electoral reforms in the country. In 2006, Uganda held its first multi-party election in over
twenty years. Fortunately, the elections did not end with levels of violence commensurate with
post-election Kenya; however, they have been largely criticized for officially-sanctioned violence
towards opposition parties, intimidation of the electorate and unfair use of public funds. Uganda
remains a fragile democracy with serious impediments to citizens’ active assertion civil rights.
Many of the suggested reforms from the judiciary, the Uganda Human Rights Commission
(UHRC) and civil rights organizations will take years to implement and adequately inform the
public about. The intention of the report is to establish what progress has been made towards
these reforms and to advocate for all necessary reforms to be in place well before the 2011
elections.
We started by conducting some comparative
research on international election standards and varying
elections formats. Then, my research partner and I
interviewed members of the Electoral Commission,
Parliament, judiciary, the UHRC, media and civil society to
10