Namibia: Parliament Backs Anti-Gay Bill Dpe Supreme Court Rulg

Contents:

• WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?
• UGANDAN PRINT SIGNS ANTI-GAY LAW THAT INCLUS DEATH PENALTY AS A PUNISHMENT
• NIGERIAN SENATE PASS ANTI-GAY BILL, FYG BRISH AID THREAT
• A NEW ANTI-GAY LAW UGANDA LLS FOR LIFE PRISON FOR THOSE WHO ARE NVICTED

WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?

Passg the Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Fay Valu bill would further rce eedoms a untry where gay sex is already punishable wh up to three years jail, crics and activists Odoi, an amic rearcher, filed a lawsu on July 7 challengg the bill's nstutnaly, sayg would impact donor aid and other forms of fancial support. Ghana's Supreme Court on Wednday led her arguments were not sufficiently nvcg to grant an lg cleared the way for the bill, one of the harsht towards the LGBTQ muny Ai, to go through a fal stage of parliamentary approval before beg signed to May, Uganda's Print Yoweri Meveni signed one of the world's tought anti-LGBTQ laws, which spelled out the ath penalty for "aggravated homosexualy"'s bill, backed by relig and tradnal lears, clus jail sentenc of up to 10 years for advotg for LGBTQ rights. 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. "The bill will propose a total ban on what the Wt lls sex-reassignment prcriptns and procr, and prohib all activi that promote homosexualy, terms of... 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".

Although 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".

UGANDAN PRINT SIGNS ANTI-GAY LAW THAT INCLUS DEATH PENALTY AS A PUNISHMENT

"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 diseas.

He add: “When the bill is laid before the Hoe (of parliament), you will realize that the foc of the bill which has to do wh voidg (gay) marriag, preventg them om adoptg or fosterg children, the clampdown on platforms and media ho that are gog to do promotn and advocy or ph those materials still rema enforced. Gee also implied that rtrictns agast “exprsns, be lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr are all still there. The mister also sisted however that the Ghanaian ernment was not unr prsure to relax existg legislatn on homosexualy.

NIGERIAN SENATE PASS ANTI-GAY BILL, FYG BRISH AID THREAT

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTThe legislatn is among the most rtrictive of s kd the world and was nmned by Wtern lears and the Uned Natns human rights Ugandan Parliament May durg the passage of an anti-gay bill. Lawmakers passed an earlier versn Lubowa/RtersThe print of Uganda signed a punive anti-gay bill on Monday that clus the ath penalty, enshrg to law an tensifyg crackdown agast L. People the nservative East Ain natn and dismissg wispread lls not to impose one of the world’s most rtrictive anti-gay law lls for life imprisonment for anyone who engag gay sex.

Anyone who tri to have same-sex relatns uld be liable for up to a law also cre the ath penalty for anyone nvicted of “aggravated homosexualy, ” a term fed as acts of same-sex relatns wh children or disabled people, those rried out unr threat or while someone is unnsc. The offense of “attempted aggravated homosexualy” rri a sentence of up to 14 legislatn is a major blow to efforts by the Uned Natns, Wtern ernments, civil society and rights groups that had implored the print, Yoweri Meveni, not to sign .

Homosexualy is already illegal Uganda, but the new law lls for far more strgent punishment and broans the list of law’s passage has stoked fear among L.

A NEW ANTI-GAY LAW UGANDA LLS FOR LIFE PRISON FOR THOSE WHO ARE NVICTED

Gay rights groups say hundreds of gay people — facg rejectn om their fai, discrimatn at work or mob jtice the streets — have reached out to them recent weeks seekg help. “There’s fear that this law will emboln many Ugandans to take the law to their hands, ” said Frank Mugisha, the most proment openly gay rights activist Uganda. Stephen Samuel Kaziimba, the archbishop of the Church of Uganda, said Febary that gay groups were “recg our children to homosexualy.

”The sweepg anti-gay measure as a growg number of Ain untri — cludg Kenya and Ghana — nsir passg siar or even stricter Ugandan legislatn, known officially as the Anti-Homosexualy Act, was first passed by Parliament March. Meveni sent back for amendments, seekg to make clear a distctn between beg gay and engagg gay sex.

Lawmakers did add language makg clear that anyone spected of beg a homosexual would not be punished unls they engaged same-sex rt of the law remaed the same, cludg mandatg a prison term of up to 20 years for anyone who promot homosexualy, a vague provisn that activists fear uld be ed to target agenci supportg L. ”ImagePrint Yoweri Meveni of Uganda has been power for almost four Nalwadda/Associated PrsAnyone younger than 18 nvicted of havg gay sex fac up to three years prison. The law, which also enurag the public to report any spected acts of homosexualy, ntas ambiguo language that mak difficult to who allows premis to be ed for same-sex relatns uld face up to seven years prison, and a person nvicted of homosexualy uld be sent for “rehabilatn.