Justice for all is unachievable. 09-0805

Justice for all is unachievable.
By Judy Mwendwa 09-0805

With Afro-cinema all over our screens in all genres you can never lack something to keep yourself busy with on Saturday afternoon especially if the month is half way; the time when you are financially challenged and you cannot accompany your friends to the movies or any other social place you hang out when the pocket is fit to show off.

Last Saturday I found myself glued to my screen not because my pocket was flat but because I was just passing by the sitting room when I heard a loud ‘objection your honour.’ There I was debating whether to watch the movie or not. The movie was about Robert who was made to look guilty by his friend who accused him of stealing the Company’s money. For a decade and a half, Robert suffered in prison for a crime he did not commit and there I sat wondering how many people suffer such injustices. Yes, it was just a movie but quite a number of movies are a clear reflection of what happens in the society. It clicked to me that one might be really innocent but proving it might be a daunting task.

Did you ever pause and wonder how many people have suffered the same predicament as Robert’s or even worse? Or how many people really deserve justice and have gone to their graves waiting for justice?
In life there are those who do not get justice for the crimes committed against them and there are those who do not get justice for the crimes they are accused of committing. This will always be the case.

In the world of today where crime is committed daily, many of the crimes go unreported perhaps because they know that they might never get justice. Think of a small child who is sexually molested and infected with HIV, I consider it the most despicable crime against humanity. It was not long ago when Citizen Television aired a story of a physically challenged nine year old who was sexually molested and compelled to carry a child in her not so developed womb, without knowledge on how to take care of the baby. The rapist just disappeared, leaving his responsibility to a child who does not even have the arms to carry the baby. It is even more agonizing that those who commit such crimes go scot free just like Robert’s friend who turned to out to be the robber after proper inspection of the case fifteen years later.


Both the poor and the rich deserve justice. Come to think of it, for the rich it is easier for them to access justice because of their financial stability, thus employing a first-class lawyer for them is no big deal, but for the poor man, he can hardly provide a well balanced meal for the family so where will he get the cash to have his case looked at. To me these means that a common man is entitled to a fair judgement on paper but in reality they cannot afford to pay the cost to get one.

The judge has the final word in our courts but he is human he doesn’t know everything and at times the judge can be absolutely wrong in his judgement. The truth is not always knowable; therefore the court might end up not knowing who the real offender is and on the other hand sentencing the accused who might be completely innocent, the accused ends up carrying someone’s cross just like Robert.

Accessibility to justice is considered a fundamental human right but there will always be someone who does not get the justice s/he deserves.