Uganda's LGBTQ muny is ' shock' over new measure, gay activist says

Contents:

• UGANDA PASSED ONE OF THE WORLD’S HARSHT ANTI-GAY LAWS. LGBTQ PEOPLE SCRIBE LIVG THERE AS ‘HELL’
• GAY ACTIVIST SAYS UGANDA LGBTQ MUNY ' SHOCK' AT NEW LAW
• UGANDA ANTI-HOMOSEXUALY BILL: LIFE PRISON FOR SAYG YOU'RE GAY
• UGANDA'S ANTI-GAY LAW: HOW RTRICTED ARE LGBTQ RIGHTS AI?
• LGBT RIGHTS AI: WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?
• UGANDA'S LGBTQ MUNY IS ' SHOCK' OVER NEW MEASURE, GAY ACTIVIST SAYS
• GAY PEOPLE UGANDA: LOVE ON THE N

UGANDA PASSED ONE OF THE WORLD’S HARSHT ANTI-GAY LAWS. LGBTQ PEOPLE SCRIBE LIVG THERE AS ‘HELL’

The act outlaws gay marriage Uganda, punish same-sex acts wh life imprisonment, and lls for the ath penalty for “aggravated homosexualy” – which clus sex wh a mor or otherwise vulnerable person, havg sex while HIV posive and ct. KAMPALA, March 22 (Rters) - Members of Uganda's LGBTQ muny are shock and fear beg arrted after parliament passed a new law that mak a crime to intify as gay, and impos tough sentenc that clu the ath penalty certa s, an activist said on "Anti-Homosexualy Bill, 2023" was passed wh a near-unanimo majory by lawmakers the east Ain untry where anti-gay sentiment ns ep.

Secretary of State Antony Blken said on Wednday the law would unrme fundamental human rights and "reverse gas the fight agast HIV/AIDS" and urged thori to rensir implementatn of the Mugisha, one of a few Ugandans who live openly as gay, told Rters he was sred the law will trigger "mass arrts of lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and queer (LGBTQ) persons and mob vlence toward LGBTQ muni.

Aggravated homosexualy volv same-sex relatns wh people unr the age of 18 or when the perpetrator is HIV posive, among other tegori, acrdg to the legislatn will next be sent to Print Yoweri Meveni, who has repeatedly nounced homosexualy, to be signed to law.

GAY ACTIVIST SAYS UGANDA LGBTQ MUNY ' SHOCK' AT NEW LAW

Homosexual acts are already illegal Uganda but this bill troduc many new crimal well as makg merely intifyg as gay illegal for the first time, iends, fay and members of the muny would have a duty to report dividuals same-sex relatnships to the was passed wh wispread support Uganda's parliament on Tuday eveng. The bill's backers say they are tryg to protect children but Ms Byagaba said: "Whether you're heterosexual or homosexual, the ernment and parliament should troduce laws, or at least implement existg laws that protect all children - boys, girls om filement. The fal versn has yet to be officially published but elements discsed parliament clu: A person who is nvicted of groomg or traffickg children for purpos of engagg them homosexual activi fac life prisonIndividuals or stutns which support or fund LGBT rights' activi or anisatns, or publish, broadst and distribute pro-gay media material and lerature, also face prosecutn and imprisonmentMedia groups, journalists and publishers face prosecutn and imprisonment for publishg, broadstg, distributn of any ntent that advot for gay rights or "promot homosexualy"Death penalty for what is scribed as "aggravated homosexualy", that is sexual abe of a child, a person wh disabily or vulnerable people, or s where a victim of homosexual asslt is fected wh a life-long illnsProperty owners also face risk of beg jailed if their premis are ed as a "brothel" for homosexual acts or any other sexual mori rights' activiA small group of Ugandan MPs on a mtee sctisg the bill disagreed wh s premise.

UGANDA ANTI-HOMOSEXUALY BILL: LIFE PRISON FOR SAYG YOU'RE GAY

They argue the offenc seeks to crimalise are already vered the untry's Penal Co 2014, Uganda's nstutnal urt nullified another act which had toughened laws agast the LGBT clud makg illegal to promote and fund LGBT groups and activi, as well as reeratg that homosexual acts should be punished by life imprisonment, and was wily nmned by Wtern urt led that the legislatn be revoked bee had been passed by parliament whout the required quom.

A broadst reporter based eastern Uganda feels empowered to vtigate sexual crim by a sectn of the law requirg the public to report "reasonable spicn" of the "offense of homosexualy, " the reporter told CPJ. A member of the Lbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgenr (LGBT) seen reactg after Kenya's High Court led to uphold the Brish-era penal that crimalis gay sex (Photo: 24 May 2019)In the latt sign of risg homophobia different Ain untri, a Kenyan opposn MP is leadg a mpaign for parliament to further crimalise the untry's small LGBTQ Peter Kaluma's move after neighbourg Uganda adopted a tough new anti-gay law, rejectg threats by US Print Joe Bin to impose sanctns and travel rtrictns on "anyone volved ser human rights ab" I met Mr Kaluma - a member of veteran Kenyan opposn polician Raila Odga's Orange Democratic Movement - he was stg behd his sk at his office the pal Nairobi, proof-readg and makg rrectns to a bill that he tends to table parliament soon. "We want to prohib everythg to do wh homosexualy, " Mr Kaluma tells me, addg that his bill will be much broar than the legislatn passed by Uganda's parliament and approved by Print Yoweri Meveni Ugandan law is regard as one of the harsht anti-LGBTQ laws the propos life imprisonment for anyone nvicted of homosexualy, and the ath penalty for so-lled aggravated s, which clu havg gay sex wh someone below the age of 18 or where someone be fected wh a life-long illns such as the other si of the ntent, MPs Ghana earlier this month unanimoly voted favour of amendments to the untry's anti-gay legislatn, phg closer to beg enacted to law.

UGANDA'S ANTI-GAY LAW: HOW RTRICTED ARE LGBTQ RIGHTS AI?

Gay paras, drag shows, wearg the lours, the flags, the emblems of the LGBTQ group, " Mr Kaluma sex is already illegal Kenya, but the ernment n also be tolerant of gay people - for example, has given asylum to people om other Ain untri, cludg Uganda, who faced persecutn their home untri bee of their sexual Kaluma tells me he wants their asylum to be revoked, and for them to leave a small, hidn church set up to offer fort and support to LGBTQ people central Nairobi, the female pastor says Mr Kaluma's bill is g "a lot of panic, anxiety, fear". It fuels some kd of vlence that now people are planng but holdg back on, " she tells Kenyans believe that gay rights are agast their relign - whether Christian or MlimAlthough the meetg Uganda was billed as an attempt to protect the "sovereignty" of Ain stat, was actually -sponsored by an Amerin Christian right-wg anisatn, Fay Watch Internatnal (FWI) Kapya Kaoma, a Zambian prit the Anglin Church and an amic at Boston Universy the US, says Ain untri are beg targeted by FWI and siar US-based anisatns, and that the impact of s lobbyg has been "horrible and humane" parts of Ai, fuellg what he lls "ant homophobia". "It is one thg to say: 'I don't agree wh you beg gay', but we didn't have the ant one, where policians now are sayg: 'You go to jail for life, you go to jail for talkg about beg gay, you go to jail bee you're livg wh your fellow woman', " Dr Kaoma 's Mormon founr Sharon Slater ni that the group promot anti-gay laws Ai.

"Fay Watch oppos legislatn that penalis a person for havg sexual attractns or for how they intify, " she says an emailed rponse to the Slater addrsed Ain lawmakers, clerics and mpaigners at their fom Uganda's laki cy of Entebbe March, and later appeared a group photo wh Print Meveni at his official more than 20 years, Mrs Slater has lobbied ernments on what she lls "fay valu" and has ma her missn to mpaign agast children and young people beg given Comprehensive Sexualy Edutn (CSE), a curriculum-based sex tn programme champned by the Uned Natns and other c a Uned Natns Populatn Fund (UNFPA) manual for out-of-school youths east and southern Ai, sayg promot homosexualy and is too explic.

"It sensis children to sex, " she Slater also quot om the manual, cludg l which say that facilators of lsons should have "a ntral, acceptg attu towards homosexualy" I ntact Maria Bakaroudis, UNFPA's CSE specialist for east and southern Ai, for ment, she says she is not keen to talk about the "opposn", as she refers to adds that the manual is only a guile, and each untry n tailor to su their Bakaroudis fends CSE, sayg provis "life-savg rmatn" to curb high rat of untend pregnanci, HIV, and sexually transmted 's LGBTQ muny has been wagg a long-nng mpaign to mand equal rightsAlthough Mr Kaluma attend the meetg Uganda -sponsored by FWI, he ni workg wh the group on his bill, which he says will propose a ban on teachg CSE sayg is part of the "LGBTQ agenda". Gee Peter Kaluma's move after neighbourg Uganda adopted a tough new anti-gay law, rejectg threats by US Print Joe Bin to impose sanctns and travel rtrictns on "anyone volved ser human rights ab". "We want to prohib everythg to do wh homosexualy, " Mr Kaluma tells me, addg that his bill will be much broar than the legislatn passed by Uganda's parliament and approved by Print Yoweri Meveni May.

LGBT RIGHTS AI: WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?

The Ugandan law is regard as one of the harsht anti-LGBTQ laws the propos life imprisonment for anyone nvicted of homosexualy, and the ath penalty for so-lled aggravated s, which clu havg gay sex wh someone below the age of 18 or where someone be fected wh a life-long illns such as the other si of the ntent, MPs Ghana earlier this month unanimoly voted favour of amendments to the untry's anti-gay legislatn, phg closer to beg enacted to law. Though ls harsh than Uganda's new law, the Promotn of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Fay Valu Bill propos a three-year prison sentence for anyone who intifi as LGBTQ and a 10-year sentence for anyone who promot homosexualy. Gay sex is already illegal Kenya, but the ernment n also be tolerant of gay people - for example, has given asylum to people om other Ain untri, cludg Uganda, who faced persecutn their home untri bee of their sexual orientatn.

Image source, Getty ImagImage ptn, Many Kenyans believe that gay rights are agast their relign - whether Christian or MlimAlthough the meetg Uganda was billed as an attempt to protect the "sovereignty" of Ain stat, was actually -sponsored by an Amerin Christian right-wg anisatn, Fay Watch Internatnal (FWI) Kapya Kaoma, a Zambian prit the Anglin Church and an amic at Boston Universy the US, says Ain untri are beg targeted by FWI and siar US-based anisatns, and that the impact of s lobbyg has been "horrible and humane" parts of Ai, fuellg what he lls "ant homophobia". "It is one thg to say: 'I don't agree wh you beg gay', but we didn't have the ant one, where policians now are sayg: 'You go to jail for life, you go to jail for talkg about beg gay, you go to jail bee you're livg wh your fellow woman', " Dr Kaoma says. KAMPALA, Uganda — Members of Uganda’s LGBTQ muny are shock and fear beg arrted after Parliament passed a measure that would make a crime to intify as gay and impose tough sentenc that clu the ath penalty certa s, an activist said “Anti-Homosexualy Bill, 2023” was passed wh a near-unanimo majory by lawmakers  the east Ain untry, where anti-gay sentiment ns ep.

UGANDA'S LGBTQ MUNY IS ' SHOCK' OVER NEW MEASURE, GAY ACTIVIST SAYS

Ronald Kabuubi / APThe legislatn will next be sent to Print Yoweri Meveni, who has repeatedly nounced homosexualy, to be signed to Mugisha, one of a few Ugandans who live openly as gay, told Rters he was sred the measure would trigger “mass arrts of lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and queer persons and mob vlence toward LGBTQ muni.

There’s gog to be a lot of trma and s of mental health that will lead to a lot of suici, ” he relatns were already illegal Uganda, but supporters of the new law say is need to punish a broar array of LGBTQ activi, which they say threaten tradnal valu the nservative and relig East Ain measure clus steep sentenc that clu ath for “aggravated homosexualy” and life prison for same-sex relatns.

The AHA clus the ath sentence for some nsensual same-sex acts, prohibs anizatns om “normalizg” sexual diversy through clive programmg and requir everyone Uganda, cludg health workers, to report people who might be lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr or queer (LGBTQ) to the police.

GAY PEOPLE UGANDA: LOVE ON THE N

” Bee the law, the Anti-Homosexualy Act, 2023, stat that anyone who has rmatn that a person has mted or tends to m an offense “shall report the matter to the police for appropriate actn, ” health provirs are still required by law to turn LGBTQ patients.

On June 7, durg his State of the Natn addrs, Print Yoweri Meveni reerated the claims the health circular: “Therefore, those who say that the homosexuals will be arrted if they go for medil re, etc., are wrong. Office Geneva, Arthur Kafeero, claimed that the act was a rponse to “a wispread mpaign to promote homosexualy amongst children schools was disvered” and that “s methods and ntent too difficult and graphic to expla.

While not specific to health, asserted that the AHA was “misterpreted” by velopment partners, that only tend to prevent the “open promotn of homosexualy, pecially among children and vulnerable groups”; that “no activi of dividuals, groups, pani or anizatns” would be affected by the AHA; and that the ernment was mted to the provisn of servic to all Uganda, whout discrimatn. • June 10: Followg the arrt of two gay men his area, the client, who is a [key populatns] ordator at a ernment health facily, was threatened wh vlence by their lleagu at work and people the muny, who said he was rponsible for the actns of the two who had been arrted bee he was always the one supportg them and givg them treatment. If is passed I am sure they will burn down the hoe, " says one, a 23-year-old transsexual who prefers to be lled "Bad Black" for safety law he refers to is the so-lled "Kill the Gays" bill, which is set to bee realy Uganda wh days.