Ugandan president to sign anti-gay bill once ‘expert’ statements in hand

‘Then we shall have a war with the homosexual lobby’: Museveni


Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni speaks about Anti-Homosexuality Bill. youtube.com (NTV Uganda)

An NTV Uganda report on YouTube shows Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni telling a cheering crowd he will sign an anti-gay bill passed by lawmakers in December “if the authorities give me their signed statements.

He later added, to more cheers and applause, “Then we shall have a war with the homosexual lobby in the world but backed by these people and you.

A Ugandan government spokesperson recently said via Twitter that Museveni had indicated he would sign off on the anti-gay measure.

“Pres Museveni has told NRM MPs he will assent the Anti-Homosexuality Bill into law,” Ofwono Opondo said. In additional posts, Opondo says a report submitted by 14 medical experts, claiming that “homosexuality is not genetic but a social behaviour,” has apparently influenced Museveni’s decision.

Museveni, who was on retreat with members of his government to discuss the issue, made his decision after reviewing a report from Uganda’s Ministry of Health that called for “regulation” of homosexuality.

One recommendation reads, “That vulnerable populations (including children, minorities, refugees, the poor, the elderly, mentally ill etc) need to be protected against sexual (and other) exploitations is not in question. African cultures had contained sexual vices. May be we need to revisit them to contain the present explosion of overt and coercive homosexual activity with the exploitation of our young children.

Museveni had said he wouldn’t sign the legislation unless scientists could prove that gay people choose their orientation and are not born that way, a previous report in the Observer stated. Both Museveni and Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi had also objected to the passing of the law without the requisite quorum.

Homosexuality is already illegal in Uganda, but the proposed law would add harsher punishments for “aggravated homosexuality,” meaning repeated offences or offences in which one partner is infected with HIV.

In a Feb 16 statement, American President Barack Obama says he is “deeply disappointed that Uganda will enact the legislation, calling it “more than an affront and a danger to the gay community in Uganda.

 

He adds, “As we have conveyed to President Museveni, enacting this legislation will complicate our valued relationship with Uganda. At a time when, tragically, we are seeing an increase in reports of violence and harassment targeting members of the LGBT community from Russia to Nigeria, I salute all those in Uganda and around the world who remain committed to respecting the human rights and fundamental human dignity of all persons.

Niko Bell

Niko Bell is a writer, editor and translator from Vancouver. He writes about sexual health, science, food and language.

Read More About:
Power, News, Africa, Human Rights

Keep Reading

The new generation of gay Conservative sellouts

OPINION: Melissa Lantsman’s and Eric Duncan’s refusals to call out their party’s transphobia is a betrayal of the LGBTQ2S+ community

Over 300 anti-LGBTQ2S+ bills have been introduced this year. This doesn’t mean we should panic

OPINION: While it’s important to watch out for threats, not all threats are created equally. Some of these bills will die a natural death

Xtra’s top LGBTQ2S+ stories of the year

The best and brightest—even most bewildering—stories from a back catalogue brimming with insight

Elon Musk and Texas attorney general Ken Paxton are suing Media Matters. Here’s why queer and trans people should care

OPINION: When politicians and the rich leverage the power of the state to quell dissent, we all lose