Uganda's anti-gay law: how rtricted are LGBTQ rights Ai? | Rters

Contents:

• UGANDA'S ANTI-GAY LAW: HOW RTRICTED ARE LGBTQ RIGHTS AI?
• NO, UGANDA IS NOT MAKG ILLEGAL TO BE GAY (AGA)

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

Uganda was not always the extremely homophobic untry has transformed to. 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. 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.

Supporters of the bill equated homosexualy wh pedophilia, suatg that gay adults groomed vulnerable children to homosexualy. Although the ath penalty was dropped om the 2009 versn, the bill was still signed to law 2014 as the Anti-Homosexualy Act. Six months later, and after wispread ternatnal prsure, the Ugandan Constutnal Court led the Anti-Homosexualy Act valid on procral grounds.

However, even though the law self fell, the spir lived on, as the bill had enjoyed wi-spread support Uganda, where 93 percent of Ugandans were opposed to homosexualy.

NO, UGANDA IS NOT MAKG ILLEGAL TO BE GAY (AGA)

For Christian fundamentalists, Uganda—an impoverished untry reverg om years of rptn and vlence—provid a blank nvas to project their missnary zeal and strong homophobia.

Amerin fundamentalist missnari were on a missn to save God-fearg Ugandans om the evil Wtern “gay agenda. ” They found willg servants opportunistic policians and Ugandan relig lears who argued that homosexualy was “un-Ain” and a Wtern export. 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.