Uganda Anti Gay Bill
UN and Amnesty International demonstrate against the anti-homosexuality law (Picture Courtesy: Guy Corbishley/Amnesty)
(The Post News) – Despite making international headlines and sparking uproar amongst the LGBTQ+ community, the Ugandan Constitutional Court has rejected the petition brought forth by Frank Mugisha, Uganda’s most prominent LGBTQ activist and others against its controversial and harsh anti-gay bill.
On Wednesday, the court recognized that parts of the bill contravene the right to health, privacy and freedom of religion yet, unanimously decided against suspending the anti-LGBTQ bill.
“We decline to nullify the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 in its entirety, neither will we grant a permanent injunction against its enforcement,” announced Uganda’s deputy chief justice and head of the court Justice Richard Buteera.
Uganda’s longstanding history of controversial legislation regarding homosexuality has been a topic of discussion since the passing of the “Anti-Homosexuality Act” in 2014. This act, initially proposed in 2009, was met with international condemnation for its harsh penalties against homosexuality. However, in August 2014, the Constitutional Court of Uganda overturned the Anti-Homosexuality Act on procedural grounds, citing the lack of members in parliament when it was passed.
After eight years, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni officially signed the bill into law in May 2023. The updated bill further targeted lesbian, bisexual, transgender and other queer (LGBTQ) people and stipulated that capital punishment be a 20-year sentence for engaging in gay sexual acts when HIV positive, death for the offence of aggravated homosexuality plus provisions for punishing those who failed to report homosexual activity.
Additionally, it criminalised the “promotion of homosexuality,” which could include advocating for LGBTQ+ rights or providing support services to LGBTQ+ individuals. Parliament encouraged law enforcement to execute the mandate as per the bill and arrest those found guilty of participating in such behavior.
This morning, the court specified that the portion of the law mandating the reporting of individuals suspected of engaging in homosexual activities to authorities infringed upon individual rights.
The passing of this law has drawn widespread criticism and led to significant tensions between Uganda and various Western nations and human rights organisations including the UN, foreign governments and the World Bank which suspended the disbursement of new loans in August 2023.
Despite making international headlines and sparking uproar among the LGBTQ+ community, the Ugandan Constitutional Court has rejected the petition brought forth by Frank Mugisha, Uganda’s most prominent LGBTQ activist, and others against its controversial and harsh anti-gay bill.
On Wednesday, the court recognised that parts of the bill contravene the right to health, privacy, and freedom of religion yet unanimously decided against suspending the anti-LGBTQ bill.
“We decline to nullify the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 in its entirety, neither will we grant a permanent injunction against its enforcement,” announced Uganda’s deputy chief justice and head of the court, Justice Richard Buteera.
Uganda’s longstanding history of controversial legislation regarding homosexuality has been a topic of discussion since the passing of the “Anti-Homosexuality Act” in 2014. This act, initially proposed in 2009, was met with international condemnation for its harsh penalties against homosexuality. However, in August 2014, the Constitutional Court of Uganda overturned the Anti-Homosexuality Act on procedural grounds, citing the lack of members in parliament when it was passed.
After eight years, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni officially signed the bill into law in May 2023. The updated bill further targeted lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and other queer people and stipulated that capital punishment be a 20-year sentence for engaging in gay sexual acts when HIV positive, death for the offense of aggravated homosexuality plus provisions for punishing those who failed to report homosexual activity.
Additionally, it criminalised the “promotion of homosexuality,” which could include advocating for LGBTQ+ rights or providing support services to LGBTQ+ individuals. Parliament encouraged law enforcement to execute the mandate as per the bill and arrest those found guilty of participating in such behavior.
This morning, the court specified that the portion of the law mandating the reporting of individuals suspected of engaging in homosexual activities to authorities infringed upon individual rights.
The passing of this law has drawn widespread criticism and led to significant tensions between Uganda and various Western nations and human rights organisations including the UN, foreign governments, and the World Bank, which suspended the disbursement of new loans in August 2023.
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