Adoch believes political will checks impunity and lawlessness

The nights were longer and lonely for Adoch, who took a leap of faith to pursue a PhD programme in 2016.  Many times, Adoch questioned her decision of subjecting herself to a gruesome academic activity and there are days she contemplated quitting.

“At the beginning, I was getting distracted. I started to concentrate in 2018 after being reminded that all I needed was determination to complete the programme,” she says.

With tenacity and encouragement from supportive loved ones, Adoch persevered until she finally graduated with a PhD in Law from Makerere University on Monday, May 23. Adoch, 42, is the first woman to attain a doctorate in Law from the same institution.

Her research focused on experiences of women and what they go through when they report cases of rape. It was titled Access to justice for women in Uganda, a feminist analysis of experience of victims of rape in the reporting and prosecution processes.

Inspiration

Adoch acknowledges that rape is a very sensitive subject that many women prefer not to discuss. “My study was on victims of rape, what they go through after they are raped, report cases at police and prosecution in courts of law,” she says adding that she wondered whether she wanted to carry forward stories of these women since they often do not get justice.

Her research was conducted in the districts of Kampala, Gulu and Iganga, where she interviewed and held focus group discussions with women, who narrated rape ordeals.

The issue of rape does not only harrow Adoch but also the whole country. In the annual Crime and Traffic Safety Report 2020, sex-related offences were registered as the fourth most committed crimes.

The cases increased in 2020 to 16, 144 from 15, 638 in 2019 partly because many school-going girls were studying at home and were taken advantage of by sexual predators.

Women were also sexually abused and subjected to domestic violence by their partners during lockdown.

The frightening moments

When the PhD journey started becoming a daunting and time-consuming exercise, she almost threw in the towel.

“The first time I submitted my proposal to my supervisor, I disappeared from work because my supervisor asked me to make numerous corrections. At this point, I was stuck. I took a break from my PhD for almost a year [around 2016],” Adoch says.

Her supervisor, Dr Sylvia Tamale, an accomplished academic, author and human rights activist, did not give up on her. She held her hand and urged her to push on amidst the academic challenges.

“There are people who struggle with supervisors but it was not the case with me and Dr Tamale. Looking back, I am now so proud of my mentors and my work,” Adoch says.

Juggling work and studies

Besides Dr Tamale, her family members were very supportive and gave her an enabling environment to focus on her work and complete assignments on time.

Along her PhD journey, Adoch continued teaching, marking students’ work, supervising interns and looking after her three daughters.

Adoch says most people prefer to study their PhDs outside the country because one is able to take themselves away from the distractions of home and focus entirely on academics.

“Studying back home can be so distracting because life is continuously happening and sometimes, one cannot easily block out unnecessary noise,” she says.

Adoch was never afraid to ask for help, especially from close family members to tend to her daughters, whenever she needed to concentrate.

On why a PhD is a lonely experience, Adoch says, “Your work is yours and nobody else’s. Your supervisor is only there to guide you,” she adds.

From 9pm to midnight and weekends were purely dedicated to her research.

“One professor advised me to review my work at least every day, even on days I was not motivated to do anything,” Adoch says.

Sleep became a luxury

And whenever she became stressed, she would jot down in a journal areas she needed to improve. In the pursuit of her academic dream, she never forgot to pray for God’s guidance.

At the time Adoch was preparing to defend her thesis, sleep became a luxury. She needed time to familiarise herself with every little detail of her work.

On the day she defended her work, Adoch had to make her presentations before scholars and experts including those who had read her research before firing questions at her.

 “You know when you finish your dissertation, you feel like an expert. But defence showed me how little I knew about my work. During that interface with researchers, I realised there are so many things I did not know,” Adoch says.

The eventual feedback from the defence team, mentorship from her supervisors and persistence made her triumphant.

Lessons

For those intending to study, Adoch says discipline and sacrifice are very important aspects. “Invest yourself in the course, be interested in learning and completing it,” she says.

Adoch urges PhD students who could have dropped out due to frustration, to seek help from supervisors, those who have previously done PhD and fellow students.

“There are moments you will be depressed and consider opting out. Do not be scared to share your work so that people can offer support,” she adds.

After bagging a doctorate in Law, Adoch says she will continue teaching and undertaking research. “My topic [which addressed issues of women and rape] is my calling and I will not relent,” she says.

Seek support

In order to succeed at anything, Adoch advises women to ask for help and support because the world asks so much from them, but also judges them harshly when they fail.

“You are supposed to look after your home, the children, cook food, clean, then look after yourself, work and also do so many  other things. This is what causes many women to break down.

They get depressed, cry, live unhappy lives and die alone. Do not be ashamed of asking for it,” she says, adding that “Women cannot do everything. Be kind to yourself. You only have one life to live.”

Publications

Adoch has been a researcher on human rights since 2006 and has done some publications on human rights and governance.

She previously undertook a study on: An impossible quest for justice: an inquiry into the prosecution of marital rape in Uganda.

The studies were conducted under the journal of the Human Rights and Peace Centre (HURIPEC) at the School of Law at Makerere University.

Dealing with lawlessness

 In a country where people do not respect the rule of law, Adoch says the only way Ugandans can be law-abiding is through political will.

“We need the political will to implement laws. Otherwise, what we have is impunity and lawlessness. People keep saying Uganda has good laws and policies but the problem is implementation.

That is not necessarily true. We can only know a law or policy is good when it is implemented and achieves the purpose for which it was enacted,” she adds.

Rethink rape case management

Adoch overall recommendation is that there is an urgent need to rethink the whole framework of handling rape and sexual violence cases because the criminal justice system does not work.

“And, there is an acknowledgement from the various criminal justice actors. There should be a recourse to restorative justice for handling cases of sexual violence,” she explains.  

Innovation

Asked how PhD holders can foster innovation and development in a low developed country like Uganda, Adoch says there has to be a deliberate strategy from leaders that values knowledge, expertise and experience and allows innovation to thrive.

“I am sure you have seen scholars leave the country and make great strides elsewhere.’’

If our leaders prioritised knowledge, research and think-tanks like other sectors of the economy,  I have no doubt that progress would be registered,” she adds. 

Titbits

•  Adoch enrolled for a PhD in 2016 and graduated on Monday May 23, 2022.

    • She has a Masters in Law from University of Cambridge, in the UK, which she completed in 2010

•   In 2005, she was at the Law Development Centre (LDC) which she admits was not a walk in the park.

“LDC was very hard. The bar course is not only hard in Uganda but across the world as well because it is about applying law concepts in life’s situations,” she says.

• Her Bachelors in Law (LLB) was obtained from the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in 2004.

 • She completed senior four and six at Mt. St. Mary’s College, Namagunga.

People who inspire her

 Dr Sylvia Tamale, Prof Joe Oloka-Onyango and Prof Christopher Mbazira at Makerere University’s School of Law, supervised and mentored Adoch while pursuing her doctorate.