Administration of Juvenile Justice and Children’s Rights in Kotido Municipality

Uganda is one of the countries in the world today that recognizes the international and regional human rights instruments in terms of the administration of juvenile justice. It has a constitution and policy frameworks, which contain provisions with a bearing on children’s rights. However, some of the cultural practices in the country have created a massive gap in these rights, although the government of Uganda has a strong mechanism to protect the rights of children. The study argued that the consciousness of the administration of juvenile justice and children’s rights remained vague because the state (Ugandan), which has the primary responsibility to protect children’s rights, relies on neo-liberal policies and criminal laws, which exalt private and class interests to the detriment of children’s rights in Uganda. The general objective of the study was to establish the effect of the administration of juvenile justice on children’s rights in Kotido Municipality while the specific was to establish ways in which criminal age determination affects children’s rights. How legal representation affects children’s rights and to analyze how detention of children with adults affects children’s rights. The study used a target population of 140 respondents however 103 respondents were selected as sample size based on Krejcie and Morgan’s table (1970). The study used a descriptive survey design which involved both quantitative and qualitative methods for data collection. Descriptive statistics was used to describe the basic features of the data in a study using Statistical Package for Social Sciences and establish the regression analysis that demonstrated how the administration of juvenile justice affects children’s rights. This system was specifically included in the questionnaires. The findings revealed that the administration of juvenile justice positively affects children’s rights in Kotido Municipality. The recommendations from the present study were obtained based on the findings of the study. The investigator discovered that the systems used by the administration of juvenile justice have a number of challenges that directly affect the delivery of juvenile justice services and hence impact the respect and observance of children’s rights. Therefore, the researcher recommended that the stakeholders should strengthen the mechanism in place to promote the juvenile justice service delivery hence leading to respect for the rights of children in Kotido Municipality.