Man accused of killing four children faces controversial tent trial

The trial of a man accused of murdering four children has begun in a tent not far from the crime scene.It is the first test of Uganda’s controversial mobile court sessions, intended so that locals can attend cases that draw widespread public interest.Christopher Okello Onyum is accused of killing the nursery students in a machete attack at the Gaba Early Childhood Development Program in a suburb of Kampala on 2 April.The incident shocked the East African country. The motive remains unclear.On Monday, Onyum pleaded not guilty to four counts of murder. Witnesses said the attacker disguised himself as a parent and briefly spoke to staff at the nursery, before locking the gate and attacking the children.An angry crowd later tried to lynch Onyum, who was rescued and taken into custody by police. The case shocked locals and led to an attempted lynching (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)He could face the death penalty if he is convicted.President Yoweri Museveni’s order to have the case tried quickly and in the very public setting of a mobile court has proved controversial.Some critics have said that it threatens to sensationalise a matter of obvious pain for the bereaved while also interfering with justice.In a statement, the Uganda Law Society said that the president’s directive amounted to executive interference and undermined the suspect’s right to a fair trial.“This is not justice,” the society said in a statement. “It’s a judicial lynching rally.”Hundreds of people gathered for the trial, which is being held in a large tent erected in the grounds of a church.This is the first time that mobile courts are being put into practice after a legal notice with formal directives for their operations were published in March this year.The judiciary defended the decision, saying that it highlighted its “commitment to taking justice closer to the people through innovative approaches”.