The repression of homosexuality in Uganda is intensifying. In a turbulent session on Tuesday, Parliament approved legislation that would severely penalize people in same-sex relationships.
“Yes wins,” announced Parliament Speaker Annet Anita Among after the final vote, emphasizing that “the law was passed in record time.” “This Chamber will not hesitate to limit any right that recognizes, protects and safeguards the sovereignty of this country and its morals,” she also said.
The law is now in the hands of the President
MEPs significantly amended the original text, which provided for prison sentences of up to 10 years for anyone engaging in homosexual acts or claiming to be LGBT+ in a country where homosexuality is already illegal. The extent of the new statutory penalties was initially unknown. The law must now be presented to President Yoweri Museveni, who can either enact or veto it.
This vote in Uganda comes in the context of a virulent wave of homophobia in East Africa, where homosexuality is illegal and often viewed as a crime. Conspiracy theories abound on social media on the subject, accusing obscure international forces of promoting homosexuality in Uganda.
The precedent of 2014
Last week, President Museveni, in power since 1986, called homosexuals “deviants.” Shortly thereafter, on March 17, Ugandan police announced the arrest of six men for “homosexual practices”. Uganda has strong anti-homosexuality legislation – a legacy of British colonial laws – but since gaining independence from Britain in 1962 there has been no prosecution for consensual homosexual acts.
In 2014, the Ugandan judiciary blocked a law approved by MPs and signed by President Museveni punishing same-sex relationships with life imprisonment. This text had sparked an outcry beyond Uganda’s borders as some rich countries suspended aid after it was tabled in Parliament.