Meet the LGBT activists fightg Uganda's anti-gay law | Uganda | The Guardian

Contents:

• ANTI-GAY RHETORIC RAMPS UP FEAR AMONG LGBT+ UGANDANS AHEAD OF POLLS
• UGANDA ANTI-HOMOSEXUALY BILL: LIFE PRISON FOR SAYG YOU'RE GAY
• LGBTQ ACTIVISTS UGANDA ' SHOCK' OVER ANTI-GAY LEGISLATN, FEARG MASS ARRTS
• UGANDAN ACTIVIST SPEAKS OUT AGAST ANTI-GAY BILL
• UGANDA'S LGBTQ MUNY IS ' SHOCK' OVER NEW MEASURE, GAY ACTIVIST SAYS
• UGANDAN GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST: ‘I HAVE TO WATCH MY BACK MORE THAN EVER’
• CHAOS EPTS AT FUNERAL OF UGANDAN GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST
• MEET THE LGBT ACTIVISTS FIGHTG UGANDA'S ANTI-GAY LAW
• UGANDAN WHO SPOKE UP FOR GAYS IS BEATEN TO DEATH
• UGANDAN LGBTQ ACTIVIST RALLI SUPPORT FOR COMPATRTS AFTER ANTI-GAY BILL
• UGANDA MORNG BREEZE TV SHOW HOST INTERVIEWS GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST
• MOURNERS TO REMEMBER GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST BEATEN TO ATH

ANTI-GAY RHETORIC RAMPS UP FEAR AMONG LGBT+ UGANDANS AHEAD OF POLLS

14, gay rights mpaigners said on people face wispread persecutn the east Ain natn, where gay sex is punishable by life imprisonment, and gay activists fear policians explog homophobic sentiment to w vot uld stoke h attacks on the muny.

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

“We have seen creased harassment agast LGBT persons and those who speak up for gay rights, ” said Frank Mugisha, who has received dozens of threats over the years as head of the leadg LGBT+ rights group Sexual Mori Uganda (SMUG). A spokman for Meveni did not immediately rpond to a requt for Raymond, head of LGBT+ chary Mbarara Rise Foundatn wtern Uganda, said policians were also makg “hate speech” on the mpaign trail, such as pledg to eradite homosexualy Uganda, if they were to be elected.

LGBTQ ACTIVISTS UGANDA ' SHOCK' OVER ANTI-GAY LEGISLATN, FEARG MASS ARRTS

His anisatn Chapter Four Uganda said the charg were “fabrited and malic” and aimed at obstctg his work as a human rights is not unual for harassment of LGBT+ Ugandans to spike followg homophobic remarks by policians. The legislatn that has been passed by our Parliament, that is pendg the signature of the print, is one of the most extreme legislatns, anti-gay legislatns, to be passed Ai. When he first traveled to Uganda and he publicly held meetgs wh policians, Ugandan ernment officials, he told Ugandans homosexualy is a Wtern agenda that needs to be fought.

FRANK MUGISHA: That is very good to note, first of all, to see that the issue of homophobia, transphobia, the backlash the LGBT muny is facg, is not only an Ain problem, ’s a global problem.

UGANDAN ACTIVIST SPEAKS OUT AGAST ANTI-GAY BILL

The signal that the anti-gay legislatns that are beg troduced the Uned Stat is sendg to Ai is not good, bee most and some of the text that we are seeg some of the legislatns, for example, Uganda and other plac Ai, is siar to text of the legislatns beg troduced here. Media ptn, Watch: Cheers and applse as Uganda pass anti-gay billPeople who intify as gay Uganda risk life prison after parliament passed a new bill to crack down on homosexual activi. 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. 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.

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

WorldMembers 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 Wednday. Ll for Ugandan ernment to rensirUgandan Member of Parliament John Mira drsed an anti-LGBTQ gown gtur as he leav the chambers durg the bate of the Anti-Homosexualy bill, which impos tough new penalti for same-sex relatns durg a stg at the Parliament buildgs Kampala, Uganda, on Tuday. (Abubaker Lubowa/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-LGBTQ sentiment ns 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.

UGANDAN GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST: ‘I HAVE TO WATCH MY BACK MORE THAN EVER’

A Ugandan transgenr woman who was recently attacked and currently beg sheltered watch a TV screen showg the live broadst of the ssn om the Parliament for the anti-gay bill, at a lol chary supportg the LGBTQ Communy near Kampala on Tuday.

CHAOS EPTS AT FUNERAL OF UGANDAN GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST

(Stuart Tibawwa/AFP via Getty Imag)Law nmned ternatnallySame-sex 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 clus steep sentenc that clu ath for "aggravated homosexualy" and life prison for same-sex relatns.

Aggravated homosexualy appli to same-sex activi wh people unr the age of 18 or when the perpetrator is HIV posive, among other tegori, acrdg to the pass bill crimalizg people for intifyg as LGBTQAS IT HAPPENSUgandan activist vows to keep speakg out spe new law that bans intifyg as LGBTQU.

The legislatn passed by the Ugandan Parliament yterday, known as the Anti-Homosexualy Act, is appallg and abhorrent – no one, nowhere, should have to live fear bee of who they are or whom they love. "The law vlat fundamental nstutnal rights like privacy and ee speech, so purely based on the law, I thk will be a strong se, " said lawyer Adrian | LGBTQ activist Uganda endur threats:Day 69:14Ugandan LGBTQ activist says threats and vlence won't stop the fight for civil rightsUgandan LGBT activist Pepe Julian Onziema helped shut down a 2014 law that lled for the ath penalty for homosexual acts. 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.

MEET THE LGBT ACTIVISTS FIGHTG UGANDA'S ANTI-GAY LAW

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. Mugisha has told Amnty Internatnal about the impact of the article on his life, and the so far succsful legal battle by his anizatn, to stop the tabloid om cg more hatred and vlence towards the Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr and Intersex (LGBTI) day last month, “a iend gave me the paper, and told me ‘well, you’re one of the top homos Uganda’.

STORY HIGHLIGHTSPastor berat homosexuals, says they'll "go to hell"Mourners storm the pulp and take away his microphone The proment Ugandan gay rights activist faced threats after his picture was published a magazeThe magaze lled for gays to be executed Mono, Uganda (CNN) -- A pastor rebed homosexuals at the funeral of a Ugandan gay rights activist, promptg chaos as sympathizers stormed the pulp and grabbed his microphone away. It first gaed ternatnal notoriety 2009 when David Bahati, a member of the Ugandan parliament whose views were heavily fluenced by Amerin evangelils, troduced the now famo “Kill the Gays” bill.

UGANDAN WHO SPOKE UP FOR GAYS IS BEATEN TO DEATH

Unr the guise of “protectg the tradnal fay, ” the bill advoted for the ath penalty for “aggravated homosexualy” and the imprisonment of anyone “promotg” or failg to report homosexualy. Sylvia Tamale observ, “ is not homosexualy that is un-Ain but the laws that crimalized such relatns…what is alien to the ntent is legalized homophobia, exported to Ai by the imperialists where there had been difference to and even tolerance of same-sex relatns.

On the heels of Wasswa’s murr, the recent threat of retroducg the “Kill the Gays” bill om member of Parliament (MP) Jam Buturo and other MPs, and the arrts of over one hundred spected homosexuals at an LGBTQ iendly bar, tapulted Uganda back to the ternatnal spotlight, signalg an latn of vlence and reprsn toward the Ugandan LGBTQ muny. Stemmg homophobia Uganda will be difficult; is fully entrenched Ugandan society and polics and is an easy way of unifyg an otherwise ethnilly and polilly divid populatn.

UGANDAN LGBTQ ACTIVIST RALLI SUPPORT FOR COMPATRTS AFTER ANTI-GAY BILL

This is not about the Wt exportg homosexualy to Ai or a “gay agenda”; is stead about right-wg Christian evangelils om the Wt g homophobia as a tool to tablish a foothold the Ain ntent, and lol Ugandan policians and “men of the cloth” profg om this narrative. ” The recent very public disagreement between the US envoy to Zambia and the Zambian ernment over the sentencg of two Zambian gay men to fifteen years prison is a se pot. San Dicklch-Nelson is Profsor of Government at Frankl & Marshall College and -creator of the F&M Global Barometer of Gay Rights® & the F&M Global Barometer of Transgenr Rights®.

”Mugisha is one of the activists who, together wh ne other petners, is seekg to overturn a tough anti-gay law that was signed by Uganda’s Print Yoweri Meveni Febary, threateng anyone nvicted of homosexualy wh a life sentence, and banng the promotn of gay mpaigners are argug that the law, which they scribe as dranian, is valid bee was passed parliament whout the necsary quom of lawmakers. Photograph: Lda Nyld Photograph: Lda NyldIn recent years, legislative homophobia has been sweepg slowly across Ai wh Nigeria passg new anti-homosexual legislatn this January and the lik of Ethpia and the Democratic Republic of Congo threateng to follow s footsteps.

Sce at least 2009, when MP David Bahati first tabled the anti-homosexualy bill, Uganda has very much been at the vanguard of this spread of homophobiaSpurred on by radil US evangelils such as Stt Lively, Ugandan MPs and relig lears have long been fomentg homophobia. They have acced homosexuals of beg a risk to children and of tryg to “rec” others to their e, and have nsistently lled on ernment to take more heavy-hand actn agast what they see as “immoral” and “un-Ain” tabloids have also got volved, most famoly October 2010 when Uganda’s Rollg Stone published the photos of 100 alleged homosexuals unr the headle “Hang Them!

UGANDA MORNG BREEZE TV SHOW HOST INTERVIEWS GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST

Many onlookers rema the opposg si, LGBTI groups, human rights anisatns and some Wtern ernments have fought agast the homophobic trends, and was perhaps thanks to their prsure that a vote on Bahati’s bill end up beg postponed for so long. In Febary, however, after half a of to-g and o-g, the ferrals fally me to an end and, the face of overwhelmg domtic support for the anti-gay bill, Meveni signed to this rnatn of the act, the ath penalty proposed the origal draft had been removed, but life sentenc were troduced for so-lled “aggravated homosexualy” and, what’s more, the “promotn of homosexualy” was outlawed for the first might have been expected, however, the specific legal ntent of the act was not as important as the basic msage sent out to society, and after the bill’s signg, homophobic cints skyrocketed by somewhere between 750% and 1, 900% acrdg to statistics gathered by SMUG.

MOURNERS TO REMEMBER GAY RIGHTS ACTIVIST BEATEN TO ATH

The urt, however, led favour of the mister, claimg that he’d had the thory to shut down the workshop bee was directly “promotg” or “cg” homosexualy and was therefore illegal to beg wh. Ined, is partly thanks to the systems that many groups have been able to ntue providg support for those need, while activists are, now as ever, still llg upon fellow human rights anisatns for assistance, meetg wh policians the hope of fdg alli, and fightg hard the urts to challenge the nstutnaly of the anti-homosexualy act. It has also been about advotg for change, anisg gay pri march to give the LGBTI muny a sense of digny and uny, and tryg to change the mdset of Ugandan LGBTI muny wants to be unrstood, accepted and loved, not jt to survive.

27, 2011NAIROBI, Kenya — David Kato knew he was a marked the most outspoken gay rights advote Uganda, a untry where homophobia is so severe that Parliament is nsirg a bill to execute gay people, Mr.