Kampala– Police have come out to clarify that whereas adultery was outlawed as a criminal offence in Uganda, elopement is still an offence and is punishable according to the law.
Last week, police spokesperson Fred Enanga, disclosed that having sexual intercourse with a married person was nolonger criminal in Uganda and that such offences shouldn’t be reported to the police.
This caused public debate and excitement among a section of Ugandans.
However, while addressing a press conference at the police headquarters in Kampala on Monday, Enanga noted that some Ugandans had confused adultery with elopement and yet the latter is still criminal in Uganda’s law books.
“Any person who elopes with a married woman or entices or causes a married woman to elope with him commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or a fine not exceeding 200 shillings. The same applies to any person who elopes with a married man or entices or causes a married man to elope with her.” Explained Enanga
He added that adultery was outlawed because it was discriminative against women.
In 2007, the Constitutional Court scrapped Section 154 of the Penal Code Act that made adultery an offence, which attracted a year in jail for cheating married women.
“We want to inform the public that much as this debate caused a lot of excitement, there are consequences that come with adultery. You should know that marriage is a sanctified relationship where marriage vows are meant for both spouses to execute and remain faithful to each other. If a married man finds you in his house with his wife, that’s already criminal trespass. There are other allied offences that can arise from you behaving in a funny way” Warns Enanga
He added “incidents of adultery and elopement portray unfaithfulness not only to the spouse but to the entire family.
The police mouthpiece however noted that there are few people who are reporting cases of elopement.
