Mpagi Edward Edmary, a Ugandan taxi driver, was sentenced to death for the murder of his neighbour in 1982. Not knowing that Edward was an innocent man, no murder had occurred.
Edward had been setup after a land dispute between families in the village got out of hand.
Witnesses were bribed to confirm they had seen him kill the man and throw his body away. He lived the next 20 years in Kampala’s notorious Luzira prison and was only released when his family was able to prove that the dead man had been hiding somewhere in another part of Uganda .
Edward recounts, “In Uganda, conditions for death row prisoners are cruel, degrading, and inhumane. We were always denied medicines. There were lice, flies, and other vermin in the prison, and this resulted in many illnesses – and many prisoners died from these illnesses.
In 1984 my brother developed malaria and stomach complications because of inadequate food and skin conditions. I pleaded with the prison authorities to give my brother medication and treatment.
Vanguard
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