In defiance of international pressure, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni signed some of the harshest anti-LGBTQ laws in the entire world, according to the speaker of parliament.
The bill calls for the execution of those who commit “aggravated homosexuality,” which includes incest, having sex with a minor, and having sex while HIV positive.
The bill makes it against the law to withhold information from the police about what it terms “perpetrators of aggravated homosexuality” and criminalizes sex education for the gay community. It urges “rehabilitation”—commonly panned conversion therapy—for gay offenders.
Earlier this year, President Museveni sent the bill back to parliament for revisions. The latest version of the bill was approved earlier this month
Western governments, including the US, have already extensively criticized Uganda’s longtime leader over the law.
In 2014, a court overturned a comparable homophobic law.
Anita Annet Among, the speaker of parliament, praised the bill’s signing and claimed that it was an answer to the cries of the Ugandan people.
“I thank His Excellency, the president, for his steadfast action in the interest of Uganda. With a lot of humility, I thank my colleagues the Members of Parliament for withstanding all the pressure from bullies and doomsday conspiracy theorists in the interest of the country,” she added.
In an interview with a news agency, Henry Mukiibi, an activist who supports Uganda’s LGBTQ community, expressed his concern that people take the law into their own hands: “I think this is so horrible. We didn’t expect this – we thought he would be advised against it. We are going to be tortured. I am just scared now about what is next. People have been waiting for the bill to be signed and then they will work on us. We are going to die.”
The law is already being challenged by civil society organizations.
“This is hardly surprising for anyone following the events closely, but it is still deeply concerning that the country is viciously discriminating against its sexual minorities. The battle lines are drawn and the next stage of the contestation will be in a court of law,” Nicholas Opiyo, a prominent human rights lawyer said.
“The civil society in Uganda together with the LGBTQI community is prepared to take this to the courts and challenge the law. Because this law is a deeply discriminatory and repressive law that doesn’t meet any international human rights and local standards.”
He continued by saying that Uganda’s development allies must hold the country’s government accountable.
Source-CNN
