A Ugandan lawmaker has introduced a draft legislation that seeks to prohibit homosexuality in the country, citing a need to pass a strong law. The bill would punish “promotion, recruitment, and funding” related to LGBTQ activities. Same-sex relations in Uganda are already criminalized under a colonial-era penal code, and a harsh anti-gay legislation enacted in 2014 was later annulled by a panel of judges amid international condemnation. The new bill is expected to be assessed by a parliamentary committee before it is debated in a plenary session.
Lawmaker Asuman Basalirwa spoke of homosexuality as “a cancer,” and most lawmakers in the parliamentary chamber in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, showed support for the bill. “You are either with us or you’re with the Western world,” said Speaker Anita Among, adding that legislators would show support by raising their hands when the bill is put to a vote. The proposed legislation has raised concerns among LGBTQ activists and human rights groups, who fear that it could lead to further discrimination and violence against the LGBTQ community.
Anti-gay sentiment has grown in recent days in Uganda amid alleged reports of sodomy in boarding schools. The recent decision of the Church of England to bless civil marriages of same-sex couples has also inflamed many, including some who see homosexuality as imported from abroad. Homosexuality is already criminalized in more than 30 of Africa’s 54 countries, and LGBTQ rights advocates say that anti-gay legislation often serves as a pretext for discrimination and persecution of LGBTQ people. The proposed bill will likely face international condemnation if it is enacted into law.