Communication 431/12 – Thomas Kwoyelo v. Uganda 235. On 10 November 2011, the Court of Appeal dismissed the two applications of the Attorney General seeking to stay the decision of the Constitutional Court, and upheld the Victim’s right to liberty and equal treatment before the law. Accordingly, on 11 November 2011, the ICD ceased the Victim’s trial before it. However, the Respondent did not release the Victim from detention. The Respondent proffers two reasons for not releasing the Victim from prison. The first reason is that the charges that were ordered to be ceased by the Constitutional Court were those relating to the violation of the Geneva Conventions Act of 1964, and thus the criminal charges of 2009 before the Magistrate’s Court in Gulu, in respect of kidnapping with intent to murder, were not withdrawn and are therefore still pending. The Respondent further argues that the Constitutional Court did not make any order with respect to these two criminal charges and the Complainant has never legally applied to be discharged by the Magistrate’s Court. 236. The Commission notes that the ruling of the Constitutional Court orders the ICD, the court from which the case was referred, to cease only the case before it. The two criminal charges were, therefore, still pending before the Magistrate’s Court. The Respondent is thus justified in keeping the Victim in detention. 237. The second reason given by the Respondent is that when the ICD ceased the trial, it did not issue a release warrant for the Victim without which the prison officials would not be able to release him from custody. 238. The Commission is of the opinion that as long as there are other criminal charges pending against the Victim, the prison officials are justified in not releasing him. The existence of other criminal charges coupled with the fact of him being an ex-combatant who can be detained justifiably even when there are no pending cases are perhaps some of the reasons why the Constitutional Court desisted from ordering his release. 64 62nd Ordinary Session, 25 April – 9 July 2018