In 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has taken three landmark decisions to protect the Palestinian population, including warning Israel against the risk of being accused of genocide. In each of these decisions, alone against all, one judge from Uganda distinguished herself by being systematically and fully "against" the majority opinion.
"She was very bright in class, independent minded, a listener and a class apart," recalls Dr. Maggie Kigozi, her old friend at Uganda's Gayaza Girls' School near the Ugandan capital Kampala. "We are proud of her international roles," continued Kigozi, 74, who rose to become head of Uganda's investment authority, an entrepreneur, philanthropist, academician and leads the national scout movement.
Julia Sebutinde is the second born of four siblings, three girls and a boy. She started her education at Lake Victoria Primary School in Uganda's former administrative capital Entebbe, where she was born in 1954 under British rule. She joined the prestigious Gayaza High School in 1968 and then Kings College Buddo, where children of the privileged were sent, before entering Makerere University to study law.
In Uganda, Sebutinde worked in the Ministry of Justice from 1978 until 1990. She entered Edinburgh Law School, University of Edinburgh, for her Master of Law, graduating in 1991. In 2009, she was awarded an honorary doctorate in law by the University of Edinburgh.
She is married to John Bagunywa Sebutinde and has two daughters. Despite her fame, the family prefers to stay away from the media and live quiet lives.
Sebutinde: Both glorified and hated in Uganda
In Uganda, Sebutinde is glorified and hated in equal measure.
In March this year, a local civil society organisation, Always Be Tolerant (ABETO) gave her an award for her ruling in the Palestinian case, while hordes of critics poured posts on social media condemning her. Many recalled Uganda's historic relations with South Africa's independence struggle - during which Uganda harboured African National Congress fighters in Central Uganda, the Judge's home region - and drew parallels with that of the Palestinians.
While receiving the award on her behalf, her husband, John Bagunywa Sebutinde simply said, "Julia is a very independent person, she likes being her own and we are proud of her work". "We are grateful that she is being honoured for her work," he added cautiously.
When on 26 January this year the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared itself competent on the case filed by South Africa against Israel concerning Gaza, and ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to "prevent the commission of all acts within the scope" of the Genocide Convention, Sebutinde opposed the decision point by point. When on 24 May the UN court ordered Israel to immediately cease its offensive on Rafah, Gaza, she again fully opposed the majority. Last Friday 19 July, Sebutinde expressed again her complete disagreement with the latest ICJ decision, declaring Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories illegal.
"Israel has the right to defend itself"
In her dissenting opinion to the UN Court's May 24 order, she stated for instance that "Israel's ongoing military operations in Rafah are part of the broader conflict initiated by Hamas on 7 October 2023, when Hamas attacked Israeli territory, killing citizens and abducting others."
"In my view, a suspension of Israel's military offensive in Rafah, whether temporary or indefinite, has no link to South Africa's plausible rights or Israel's obligations under the Genocide Convention, as required by Article 41 of the Statute of the Court and its associated jurisprudence. This directive, which could be erroneously misunderstood as mandating a unilateral ceasefire in part of Gaza, amounts to micromanaging the hostilities in Gaza by restricting Israel's ability to pursue its legitimate military objectives, while leaving its enemies, including Hamas, free to attack without Israel being able to respond. This measure also implicitly orders Israel to disregard the safety and security of the over 100 hostages still held by Hamas, a terrorist organization that has refused to release them unconditionally."
"I firmly believe that Israel has the right to defend itself against its enemies, including Hamas, and to continue efforts to rescue its missing hostages. These rights are not incompatible with its obligations under the Genocide Convention."
Not the Ugandan government position
Shortly after her 26 January dissenting opinion, the Ugandan government was quick to distance itself: "As government we took note of Justice Julia Sebutinde's ruling on Palestine. We wish to clarify that the position taken by her was her own individual and independent opinion, and does not in any way reflect the position of Uganda," Ugandan Foreign Minister Jeje Odongo told Justice Info. "We affirm our position in line with the positions of the recently concluded 19th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), held in Kampala on 19-20 January, 2024," he added.
"The common position with NAM is for an immediate end to the Israeli military aggression and siege on the Gaza Strip and for immediate, unimpeded and sufficient humanitarian assistance at scale, to meet the enormous needs of the Palestinian civilian population and to enable urgently needed reconstruction and recovery, especially of homes and vital infrastructure," the Ugandan government said [www.independent.co.ug/breaking-Uganda-issues-statement-on-icj-ruling-ssebutinde] after the ruling.
In New York, Uganda's permanent Representative to the UN Adonia Ayebare deemed appropriate to recall, when contacted by Justice Info, that "Uganda's position on the support for the struggle of the Palestinian people has never changed and this has been expressed through our voting at the United Nations".
"Abrasive" international judge
Ofwono Opondo, the Director of Uganda Media Centre, the information clearing house, described Sebutinde as "abrasive".
"Justice Julia Sebutinde returned to the Uganda media spotlight when she joined Israeli Judge Aharon Barak to dissent on a case before the International Court of Justice brought by South Africa against the State of Israel for its ongoing near-genocidal war on Palestinians in Gaza Strip most of them children, women and male civilians, and destruction of hospitals, schools and energy," Opondo wrote in an Opinion published on February 3 on the government media website.
But Barak himself was less radical than Sebutinde , as he voted in favour of the provision on humanitarian aid to Gaza, as well as for the measure demanding that Israel "take all measures within its power to prevent and punish the direct and public incitement to commit genocide" in Gaza.
"Some Ugandans are literally 'mad' that Sebutinde cannot 'see' the indiscriminate and disproportionate ground, sea and aerial military annihilation Israel Defence Forces (IDF) have rained on unarmed Palestinians in retribution for the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack [...] Many Ugandans and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs probably expected Sebutinde, being Ugandan, to have followed the government position in condemning Israel's war, but nay," Opondo added, recalling that the ruling is not a first by the judge to stoke controversy.
Before being elected to the ICJ, Sebutinde was appointed in 2007 to the Special Court for Sierra Leone. She was later appointed in the courtroom responsible for hearing the case against former Liberian president Charles Taylor. In that position she started to be internationally known for her "no", when she refused to attend a disciplinary hearing against Taylor's defence lawyer.
"Rough" High Court Judge
In Uganda, she was already well known for her fierce temper, at times overriding legal arguments.
In 1996, she was appointed Judge of the High Court of Uganda. In that capacity, she presided over three commissions of inquiry. Sebutinde first shot to the limelight on the national map in 1999 when she chaired the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into corruption and mismanagement in the Uganda Police Force, appointed by President Yoweri Museveni.
"Her rough questioning of senior police officers, among them then Inspector General of Police John Cossy Odomel, CID [Criminal Investigations Department] boss Chris Bakiza, Director of Administration Stephen Onyuu, and Kampala Police Commander Edward Ochom -- deemed already guilty in the public eye -- endeared her to the public," Opondo wrote in his column.
"But it turned out that her rough tackle did not yield solid and incriminating evidence against some officers named in rogue criminal behaviour, gunrunning, maladministration, unprofessional conduct or even corruption, and many were left to complete their career often on promotion, which disappointed the public," Opondo continues. Although many think that her efforts went to waste, the ongoing reforms in the Uganda police force, gradual as they appear, are coming from her recommendations, he adds.
Opondo also recalls that Sebutinde chaired in 2002 the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Uganda Revenue Authority where many expected her to obtain an alleged "list of 100 most corrupt officers". But it "went in a similar pattern of rough tackle". "Instead of methodically interrogating those before her, Sebutinde mostly harangued them with outlandish accusations, and those adversely named in her final report ran to the High Court which quashed it".
During another high-profile inquiry involving corruption in the military that included purchase of junk attack helicopters from Russia by Uganda and Rwanda through a network of middlemen linked to Museveni's government in October 2003, six gunmen attacked her residence in the upscale Kampala suburb of Bugolobi during the night. But her military guards repulsed the attack. None of the attackers was ever found and the investigations suffered a still birth.
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"A symbol of women's emancipation"
In addition to her international assignments, Sebutinde is the current chancellor of Muteesa I Royal University, a university owned by the traditional Buganda kingdom in Uganda from which her family originates.
"Justice Sebutinde gives pride to not only Buganda as a Kingdom and as a loyal servant of King Ronald Mutebi but to Uganda and Africa at large," Buganda Kingdom Prime Minister Charles Peter Mayiga told Justice Info. "She is a symbol of women's emancipation but has remained firmly rooted in the Buganda culture," he said, describing her as a hard-working woman. "Because of her commitment and passion in education, she was appointed Chancellor of our university."
Before that, Justice Sebutinde held another position of Chancellor of the International Health Sciences University, in Kampala, from 2008 to 2017.
First African woman to sit at the ICJ
Back in the ICJ 2011 judges' election, Sebutinde was one of eight candidates for five vacant seats, having been nominated by the national groups of Croatia, Denmark and Uganda. In the election, a successful candidate needs an absolute majority of votes both in the United Nations General Assembly and in the Security Council. On the first day of voting, four candidates were elected but the fifth position was not filled. Abdul Koroma, the incumbent from Sierra Leone, had received a majority in the Security Council. But in the General Assembly, after five rounds of voting, the contender Sebutinde had received 97 votes out of 193, with 97 votes needed for election. When balloting resumed, Sebutinde received an absolute majority of votes in both the Security Council and the General Assembly, and thus was declared elected.
She then was elected for a second term at the ICJ in March 2021. And on February 6, 2024, just a few days after having voted against all emergency measures sought by South Africa against Israel, she was elected vice-president of the ICJ by her peers, for a term of three years.
Sebutinde is the first African woman to sit at the ICJ.
Grace Matsiko is a veteran journalist with 26 years experience having covered the armed conflicts in Uganda, South Sudan, Sudan, DR Congo, Burundi, Central African Republic and Somalia. His area of interest is investigative journalism with focus on security, defence, justice and politics. He has worked with leading international news networks such as Agence France Press (AFP) since 2006.
