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Te legal fraternity in Uganda is mourning the death of veteran lawyer Peter Muliira, who passed away early on Saturday.
Muliira was a Senior Partner at Mulira & Co. Advocates and a respected cultural figure, having served as Minister of Heritage Affairs in the Buganda Kingdom. Human rights lawyer Eron Kiiza described the late Muliira as an astute legal mind who dedicated his expertise to serving Uganda and the people of Buganda.
“He was a fine example to young lawyers. He wielded the law against corruption, oppression, and injustice. He spoke his mind through his legal practice, his leadership, and his pen. A remarkable and consequential lawyer. God bless his soul,” Kiiza said.
The Katikkiro of Buganda, Charles Peter Mayiga, confirmed the death through his official X (formerly Twitter) account. Writing in Luganda, Mayiga described Muliira as a man of wisdom and deep intellectual curiosity: “Abadde muntu wa bwino, nga anoonyereza n’okuwandiika ku nsonga gy’aba ayagala okwogeraako.”
Mayiga also highlighted Muliira’s lineage, noting that he was the son of the late Eldard and Rebecca Muliira. His mother was a daughter of Ssekiboobo Ham Mukasa and related to Victoria Nalwanga, the mother of Sarah Nalule, who is the mother of Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II.
Muliira was widely known for his deep knowledge of land matters in Uganda and was a strong defender of the Mailo Land tenure system. He will also be remembered for his role as lead counsel in Constitutional Petition No. 18 of 2005, in which he represented the Uganda Law Society.
The landmark case affirmed that military interference and the unlawful trial of civilians by military courts violate the rights to liberty, fair trial, and proper jurisdiction. The petition stemmed from the events surrounding the siege of the High Court in Kampala.
On March 1, 2007, armed men, believed to be members of the military and wearing police uniforms without name tags, stormed the court premises to re-arrest suspects linked to the People’s Redemption Army (PRA) shortly after the court had ordered their release. The suspects had spent 15 months in detention and faced treason charges alongside former FDC President Dr. Kizza Besigye.
This incident followed an earlier siege in November 2005, when the UPDF’s “Black Mamba” anti-terrorism unit surrounded the High Court, preventing the release of the same suspects. At the time, Dr. Besigye was contesting against President Yoweri Museveni in the February 2006 presidential elections.
SOURCE: URN
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