NATIONAL | Despite existing laws banning corporal punishment, incidents of teacher-led violence against students continue to surface in Uganda—two of the most disturbing emerging from Western Uganda in just the first term of the academic year.
Viral videos and widely circulated photos have laid bare scenes of extreme physical punishment in schools, often disguised as discipline.
These recent cases have reignited public anger and intensified calls for accountability in the education system.
According to the Uganda Child Helpline (UCHL), over 23,000 cases of violence against children were reported in 2017–2018 alone, with schools being among the most common settings.
The UN children's and education fund, Unicef, reports reveal that 59% of girls and 68% of boys in Uganda experience physical violence during childhood, while 35% of girls and 17% of boys report sexual abuse.
This widespread abuse continues despite a clear legal framework: the Education Act of 2008 explicitly bans corporal punishment and mandates non-violent forms of discipline, while the Children Act Cap 59 guarantees protection from all forms of violence and degrading treatment.
Yet enforcement remains weak.
Two recent cases have brought the issue to the forefront.
Sixteen-year-old Moreen Nagasha, a Senior One student at St Victor Secondary School in Katara, Buhweju District, was brutally assaulted by at least three teachers—including the headteacher and the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) chairman—after being accused of stealing Shs45,000.
Nagasha says she was beaten from 11am to 5pm before being taken to a nearby medical centre. Her parents were not informed throughout the ordeal.
Police in Greater Bushenyi have arrested headteacher Bernard Kabagambe and PTA chairman Nicolas Kiiza in connection with the beating.
While Kabagambe initially denied the allegations, claiming the punishment was inflicted by fellow students, the police confirmed his arrest.
Another disturbing case unfolded in February at Standard College Rwashamaire in Ntungamo District. A video that quickly went viral showed two teachers—Aneb Mwesigye and Naboth Twesigye—violently beating 16-year-old Brian Akampa, a Senior Two student accused of sneaking out of school to eat kikomando (chapati and beans) in town.
The footage captured one teacher slapping Brian at the classroom door before forcing him to the floor and continuing the beating.
The matter is now before the courts. The two teachers have been charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm at Ntungamo Magistrate’s Court. They pleaded not guilty and were remanded until March 4, 2025.
Back in the communities, parents and guardians are demanding change.
“We send our children to school to be educated, not tortured,” said Ruth Atukunda, a mother of three from Mbarara.
“If teachers can’t find better ways to discipline, they shouldn’t be in schools.”
“Children make mistakes,” added Moses Mwesigwa, another concerned parent. “But beating a child for hours is not correction—it’s cruelty.”
As these stories continue to surface, many are left wondering how many other cases go unreported.
With mounting pressure from human rights activists and the public, the government now faces renewed calls to enforce the law and protect Uganda’s children from violence in the very institutions meant to nurture them.