Uganda punishes severe homosexuality with the death penalty

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni passed a controversial law against homosexuality which includes long prison terms and the death penalty for some crimes and has been condemned by Western countries.

As reported by the speaker of the Ugandan parliament, the president “carried out his constitutional mandate. He gave his consent to the Anti-Homosexuality Act”, which he considers one of the strictest in the world.

“As the parliament of Uganda, we have answered the cry of our people. We have enacted laws to protect the sanctity of the family under Article 31 of the Constitution of Uganda. We have firmly defended our culture and the aspirations of our people,” said the Speaker of the Ugandan Legislative Assembly.

Among others, he thanked Museveni for his “firm action in the interest of Uganda” and the parliamentarians who passed the bill “for resisting all the pressures of thugs and doomsday conspiracy theorists in the interest of our country”.

“The people of Uganda have had their say and it is now their duty to enforce the law fairly, consistently and firmly,” he said.

Museveni announced a new bill approved by parliament on the 2nd that still includes long prison sentences and the death penalty for some crimes, despite the president’s wish to water down the original text after strong condemnation from the West.

The Head of State refused to ratify the controversial project approved by the Parliament on March 21 and requested that it be modified so that it does not condemn the identity of LGBTIQ persons, but their actions.

The Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee struck down provisions that alluded to identity.

However, the crime of “aggravated homosexuality” (a broad term used for intimate relations with minors or other vulnerable groups) is still punishable by the death penalty.

The previous version also required Ugandans to report any suspected homosexual activity to the police or face six months in prison.

The representatives agreed to amend that provision after the president’s appeal and now the request for a report it applies only to alleged sexual crimes against children and vulnerable persons, with an increased penalty of five years in prison.

Under the newly adopted law, anyone who “knowingly promotes homosexuality” can be sentenced to up to twenty years in prison, a provision that remained unchanged from the original law.

The legal text has been harshly criticized of the United Nations, the European Union and the United States, as well as by human rights organizations.

The United Nations Human Rights Office said it was “appalled” by the adoption of this new law.