Magistrates have asked the Judiciary to amend the law so that they are given powers to try some capital offenses.

"The law should be amended so that original jurisdiction in criminal cases is extended and conferred to magistrates also in order to bring services nearer to the people.

"The High Court should then become the first appellate court," the magistrates suggested.

The law reform proposal was moved by Bukedea Senior Principal Magistrate Godfrey Kaweesa during the Third Annual Magistrates and Registrars' three-day conference at Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala.

Over 200 magistrates and registrars who attended the conference overwhelmingly supported Kaweesa's other proposal that professional magistrates be re-designated as junior judges.

His proposal is such that higher courts' judges are referred to as senior judges.

The conference also argued and agreed that magistrates and registrars could effectively handle capital offences like murder, treason, rape, aggravated defilement and others of the nature that were originally a preserve of the High Court judges, as magistrates and judges go to the same law schools and attain the same qualifications.

The Acting Registrar, Henry Adonyo, who also supported the suggestion as a proper one, told New Vision in an exclusive interview that the Judiciary administration would carefully look into all the recommendations and resolutions put forward to it by the magistrates and registrars of the courts of judicature and implement where necessary.

The chief convener of conference, Principal Judge Yorokamu Bamwine also assured the magistrates and registrars of the Judiciary's support in their efforts to fulfill their noble duties.

However, he urged them to avoid as much as possible corrupt tendencies and clear their backlog cases as fast as possible.