Uganda Spins on HIV Death Penalty?

posted: 08/01/2010

A Ugandan minister says the government will ask the MP (David Bahati - who tabled the proposed anti-gay law as a private member's bill) to withdraw the 'aggravating' clauses that require the death penalty - such as for people with HIV.

Minister of State for Investment Aston Kajara said late on Thursday that the government fears a backlash from foreign investors over the bill, which has provoked criticism from gay rights groups and protests in London, New York and Washington. Kajara says the proposed bill tarnishes Uganda's image.

President Yoweri Museveni has told colleagues he believes the bill is too harsh and has encouraged the ruling party to overturn the death sentence provision, which would apply to sexually active gays living with HIV or in cases of same-sex rape.

Source

But the very well informed Ugandan blog GayUganda says this is largely Ugandan government spin. This blog has links to the text of the draft law.

The blogger appeals for continued pressure from outside Uganda:

'So, please, all out there, do one thing. Continue the heat. Because the battle is being fought in Public Opinion, and political circles OUTSIDE Uganda. Please continue the heat, the pressure on YOUR politicians.

Christians out there, your role is still big. This bill is in the Name of Christ. I do know that the government is feeling the pressure.'

More about the Ugandan anti-gay law proposals on our two earlier reports

- first report

- second report

Report and videos of London protests at Uganda House

Uganda – extraditions and death for HIV+ sex

posted: 30/11/2009

Life imprisonment is the minimum punishment for anyone convicted of having gay sex, under an anti-homosexuality bill now before Uganda's parliament.

If the accused person has HIV, is a serial offender, a "person of authority" over the other partner, or if the "victim" is under 18, a conviction will result in the death penalty. Uganda would seek the extradition of its citizens with HIV and others charged under this law from the UK and other countries.
 

Ugandans with HIV in UK face extradition
Members of the public are obliged to report any homosexuals to police with 24 hours or risk up to three years in jail – a scenario that human rights campaigners say will result in a witch-hunt. Ugandans breaking the new law abroad will be subject to extradition requests. This means a Ugandan living with HIV in the UK could be extradited for having sex with his same sex partner. George House Trust thinks UK courts are likely to reject these extradition requests on Human Rights grounds.
 

Human rights groups within and outside Uganda have condemned the proposed legislation, which is designed to strengthen colonial-era laws that already criminalise gay sex. Stephen Lewis, a former UN envoy on Aids in Africa, said the law "makes a mockery of Commonwealth principles" and has "a taste of fascism" about it.
 

US funded evangelism behind law
But within Uganda deeply-rooted homophobia, aided by a US-linked evangelical campaign falsely alleging that gay men are trying to "recruit" schoolchildren, and that homosexuality is a habit that can be "cured", has ensured widespread public support for the bill.
President Yoweri Museveni appeared to add his backing earlier this month, warning youths in Kampala that he had heard that "European homosexuals are recruiting in Africa", and saying gay relationships were against God's will.
 

Human Rights, treaties, international aid – we don’t care
In a interview with the Guardian, James Nsaba Buturo, the minister of state for ethics and integrity, said the government was determined to pass the legislation, ideally before the end of 2009, even if meant withdrawing from international treaties and conventions such as the UN's Universal Declaration on Human Rights, and foregoing donor funding.
 

Homosexuality has always been a taboo subject in Uganda, and is considered by many to be an affront both to local culture and religion. This negative stigma and the real threat of job loss and worse harassment means that no public personality has ever "come out".
 

Gay men ignored by HIV prevention
Even local HIV campaigns – heavily influenced by the evangelical church with a bias towards abstinence over condom use – have deliberately avoided targeting gay men for both prevention and access to treatment. "This means many gay men here think AIDS is a non-issue, which is so dangerous," said Frank Mugisha, who together with a few colleagues, has risked arrest by agitating in recent years for a change in the HIV policy. Mugisha, 25, is chairman of Sexual Minorities Uganda, a coalition of local lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex groups that will all be banned under the law.  

US anti-gay evangelism
Both opponents and supporters agree that the impetus for the bill came in March during a seminar in Kampala to "expose the truth behind homosexuality and the homosexual agenda".
 

The main speakers were three US evangelists: Scott Lively, Don Schmierer and Caleb Lee Brundidge. Lively is a noted anti-gay activist and president of Defend the Family International, a conservative Christian association, while Schmierer is an author who works with "homosexual recovery groups". Brundidge is a "sexual reorientation coach" at the International Healing Foundation.
 

Pastor wires up schools myth
The seminar was organised by Stephen Langa, a Ugandan electrician turned pastor who runs the Family Life Network in Kampala and has been spreading the message that gays are targeting schoolchildren for "conversion". "They give money to children to recruit schoolmates – once you have two children, the whole school is gone," he said in an interview.

Asked if there had been any court case to prove this was happening, he replied: "No, that's why this law is needed."
 

After the conference Langa arranged for a petition signed by thousands of concerned parents to be delivered to parliament in April. Within a few months the bill had been drawn up.
 

Lonely church opposition

Christopher Senyonjo, a retired Anglican bishop, said the bill would push Uganda towards being a police state. "This law is being influenced by some evangelicals abroad," he said. "There's a lack of understanding about homosexuality – it's not recruitment, it's orientation." But among religious leaders of all faiths his is a rare voice. "As one parent told him: 'We would rather live in grass huts with our morality than in skyscrapers among homosexuals'."
 

Source
 

Anti-Gay Law to Hit HIV+ Ugandans

posted: 30/10/2009

While Kenya has just started a survey of gay men in its first real step towards HIV prevention for Kenyan men who have sex with men, Uganda is increasing its legal discrimination. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is calling for strong international protests.

Easy email Protest Action
Make an automatic protest by email with the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission - click here 

Uganda has similar colonial-era anti-gay laws to Kenya. But Uganda now wants to make them even tougher. This will worsen attempts at HIV prevention among the men who have sex with men in Uganda.

The Ugandan Parliament is debating a new law to confirm the existing criminal penalties for homosexuality and to criminalise the "promotion of homosexuality." You can get life imprisonment for a simple touch.

• Homosexual activity and HIV - death sentence proposed

HIV means any homosexual act will be treated as ‘aggravated homosexuality’ and the sentence for this will be death.

• Law to apply to Ugandans in the UK

The draft law claims to apply to all Ugandan nationals living abroad, including in the UK. Not welcome news for HIV positive Ugandan men who have sex with men here.

• New duty to report gay Ugandans to the authorities

The Anti-Homosexuality Bill targets lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Ugandans, their defenders and anyone else who fails to report them to the authorities whether they are inside or outside of Uganda.

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and Sexual Minorities of Uganda (SMUG) are calling for the draft law to be dropped now and for human rights protection to be guaranteed for all Ugandans, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Details and Background
Uganda's Penal Code Article 145a already criminalizes "carnal knowledge of any person against the order of nature" - a charge used to prosecute, persecute and blackmail LGBT people with the threat of life imprisonment.
 

The new bill would penalise homosexuality, using life imprisonment to punish anything from sexual stimulation to simply "touch[ing] another person with the intention of committing the act of homosexuality." It would also punish "aggravated homosexuality" which is activity by "serial offenders" or those who are HIV positive - with the death penalty.

The bill criminalises "promotion of homosexuality" in the form of funding and sponsoring LGBT organizations and broadcasting, publishing, or marketing materials on homosexuality and punishes these acts with a steep fine, 5-7 years of imprisonment, or both.

Any person in authority who fails to report known violations of the law within 24 hours will also be subject to a significant fine and up to 3 years in prison - even when this means turning in their colleagues, family, or friends.

More shocking, the bill claims jurisdiction over Ugandans who violate its provisions while outside of the country.

The bill effectively bans any kind of community or political organising around sexuality that is not strictly conventionally heterosexual. It will be easy to misuse and abuse for repression and it encourages the harassment and persecution of LGBT people by everyone else.

HIV prevention threat
HIV prevention activities in Uganda, which rely on an ability to talk frankly about sexuality and provide condoms and other safer-sex materials, will be seriously compromised. Women, sex workers, people living with HIV, and other marginalized groups may also find their activities tracked and criminalised through this bill.

International Treaties and Ugandan Constitution ignored
The Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009 not only violates multiple protections guaranteed by the Constitution of Uganda, which ensures independence for human rights non-governmental organizations, but contravenes the African Charter on Human and People's Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and other international human rights treaties to which Uganda is a party. This bill undermines Uganda's commitment to the international human rights regime and threatens the basic human rights of all its citizens.

Easy email Protest Action
Make an automatic protest by email with the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission - click here 

Join the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and Sexual Minorities of Uganda (SMUG) in calling for a swift end forthe Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009 and for the protection of all Ugandans, regardless of their sexual orientation, HIV status, or gender identity.

Easy email letters to the people at the top in Uganda

This sample email letter is used in the emails below

To send your protest email ADD your name, country (and any organisation you represent) to the end of the email

President - Yoweri Kaguta Museveni
Prime Minister - Apollo Nsibambi
Speaker of the Parliament - Edward Ssekandi Kiwanuka 
Minister of Gender, Labour, and Social Affairs - Honorable Opio Gabriel
Chair of the Uganda Human Rights Commission - Med Kaggwa 
Directorate for Ethics and Integrity - Director
Chair of the Uganda Diplomatic Human Rights Working Groups - Mathisen Gørild
 

Please copy your email to
The UK’s High Commissioner (Ambassador) to the Republic of Uganda
Martin Shearman
and to
IGLHRC

More information about LGBT issues in Uganda