Yoweri Museveni Uganda's president has signed harsh new anti-gay laws into effect, something which is being described as “a dramatic blow to freedom expression and association”. Ugandan officials broke into loud applause as President Yoweri Museveni put his signature to the document in front of foreign journalists at his State House outside the capital. "There's now an attempt at social imperialism, to impose social values. We're sorry to see that you (the West) live the way you live but we keep quiet about it," he said. Human Rights Watch says the law increases penalties for some forms of consensual same-sex conduct between adults; curtails constitutionally protected rights to privacy, family life, and equality; and violates internationally protected rights to freedom of association and expression. “President Museveni has dealt a dramatic blow to freedom expression and association in Uganda by signing the Anti-Homosexuality bill,” says its senior Africa researcher Maria Burnett. “Attacking basic rights and criminalising the expression of divergent views doesn’t bode well for anyone. This is yet another troubling sign of disregard for fundamental human rights in Uganda.” Under the new law, the penalty for same-sex conduct is now life imprisonment. The “attempt to commit homosexuality” incurs a penalty of seven years as does “aiding and abetting” homosexuality. A person who “keeps a house, room, set of rooms, or place of any kind for purposes of homosexuality” also faces seven years’ imprisonment. Because the law also criminalizes the “promotion” of homosexuality, there are far-reaching implications beyond the increase in punishments for same-sex sexual conduct. A person could go to prison simply for expressing a peaceful opinion. Local and international nongovernmental organizations doing advocacy work on human rights issues could now be at risk of criminal sentencing of up to seven years. Public health promotion and prevention efforts targeting “at risk” groups might have to be curtailed, and health educators and healthcare providers could also face criminal sanction under the same provision. Human Rights Watch says Museveni’s government, over his 28 years in office, has increasingly suppressed freedom of assembly, expression, and association and threatened civil society groups working on a range of issues, including corruption, land, oil, and good governance. Sign the Kill the Bill petition here
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Tuesday, 25th February 2014 - 8:09am