Ugandan First Lady behind the Anti-Homosexuality bill

Repost from the Daily Moniter

The First Lady Ms Janet Museveni, was behind the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, US Ambassador to Uganda, Jerry Lanier, said in a leaked diplomatic cable.

The revelation was made by Senior Presidential Adviser John Nagenda, during a discussion with a US embassy political officer.

In Mr Lanier’s comments which were leaked on September 1, by whistleblower Wikileaks, Mr Nagenda is quoted to have told the US embassy that President Museveni is “quite intemperate” when it comes to homosexuality, but the First Lady, who he described as ‘a very extreme woman,’ “is ultimately behind the bill.” Continue Reading

From Persecution to Persecution: LGBTI Refugees in Uganda and Kenya

Repost from council member Human Rights First

“Why would a gay refugee come to Uganda?”  This was a logical question raised by a Ugandan human rights defender the other day while we were in Kampala doing research on the protection challenges facing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) refugees in the region.

Uganda – where an infamously draconian “Kill the Gays” bill was introduced in the last session of Parliament, where last year a local newspaper published the names and photos of 100 alleged homosexuals under the headline “Hang Them,” where current law criminalizes same sex acts, where many police officers are viewed as a source of persecution against LGBTI persons rather than protection, where homophobic violence is committed by civilians with perceived impunity, where LGBTI persons are commonly discriminated against in seeking housing, employment and medical care, and where LGBTI Ugandans flee from – is far from being a “safe haven” for any LGBTI refugee. Rather, Uganda offers its own set of dire hardships for those to who seek protection there. Continue Reading

Bachmann Campaign Organizer Tied to “Kill the Gays” Backer in Uganda

Repost from The Advocate

The man running outreach to faith-based communities for Republican Michele Bachmann’s nomination campaign has been tied to the key backer of the “Kill the Gays” bill in Uganda.

The Atlantic reports that Peter E. Waldron had tried to be coy about his identity when confronted, at first refusing to provide his name, but journalist Garance Franke-Ruta discovered that the evangelical pastor was once imprisoned in Uganda for a supposed terrorism plot.

A film about Waldron’s experience is apparently in the works, titled The Ultimate Price: The Peter E. Waldron Story. While Waldron was in Uganda from 2002 to 2006, the Republican political activist was reportedly arrested with a small weapons cache. The details are murky but he spent more than a month in prison.

The surfacing of this name, tied to Uganda, got people wondering. And it turns out Waldron was spotted by happenstance while visiting the church of staunchly antigay, and dangerous, pastor Martin Ssempa. A journalist with The New Republic, Andrew Rice, bumped into them together while researching an article on evangelicals in the country. Continue Reading

A global look at LGBT gains and loses

After a month of LGBT Pride celebrations with lots to celebrate at home and abroad we still have lots of work to do, Reed Karaim gives us an in-depth look at the state of LGBT human rights around the globe.

Repost from CQ Global Researcher Gay Rights

By some measures, the last 10 years could be considered the “Gay Rights” decade, with countries around the world addressing concerns of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community. Beginning with the Netherlands in 2001, gay marriage metamorphosed almost overnight from a largely ridiculed notion to a legal reality in at least 10 countries. Sixteen other nations recognized same-sex civil unions. Nevertheless, homosexual acts remain illegal in most of Africa and the Muslim world, with severe penalties for anyone found guilty of the crime. If Uganda approves a proposal to criminalize repeated homosexual activity, it will join the five other countries (and parts of Somalia and Nigeria) where homosexual activity is punishable by death. In Russia and other Eastern European countries, gay and lesbian “pride parades” have sometimes met with violent responses, leading some observers to believe a backlash against rapid gay and lesbian advances may be developing in parts of the world. Continue reading by downloading the pdf (even though you can download the pdf here, we urge you buy your own copy from CQ Press).

LGBTI “Pride” in Uganda Means Fighting for Basic Rights and Freedom

Julius Kaggwa photo:Bronwynne Pereira

Repost from Council member Human Rights First. By Beth Tuckey

Click below to listen to an audio podcast of Ugandan activist Julius Kaggwa on the state of LGBTI equality in Unganda.

As we celebrate Pride Month in the United States, we should also celebrate those who continue to fight for basic rights and freedoms of LGBTI persons in other countries. Ugandan LGBTI activist Julius Kaggwa’s advocacy for equality is an important testament for those in Uganda who have been identified as fringe and whose rights as human beings and citizens are being challenged. Listen to this week’s podcast and learn about Julius’ work on the ground in Uganda and the current state of the controversial Anti-homosexuality bill.

Although the bill never came to a vote before Parliament closed in mid-May, it had the effect of further stigmatizing an already vulnerable population. Many link the murder of activist David Kato in January to the increasingly violent rhetoric surrounding homosexuality. Just months before his death, Kato’s name and photo appeared in a newspaper article about homosexuals in Uganda with the headline “Hang Them.” The fact that the legislation was tabled is only of little comfort to those working on LGBTI rights in Uganda.

Commentary by Rev. Canon Albert Ogle: An eyewitness to homophobia, from Uganda to the UN

Photo credit: Albert Ogle/Facebook

repost from SDGLN

The Rev. Canon Albert Ogle – Special to SDGLN
June 10th, 2011

Editor’s note: Albert Ogle writes: “This week, I travelled from Kampala, Uganda to the United Nations where the global community is debating its priorities for HIV in the next five years. My week began with the homophobic celebration of Ugandan Martyrs Day in Kampala, talking and working with the persecuted LGBT community and praying at the grave of David Kato. It has ended in the UN General Assembly where the role and existence of the LGBT global community is not only questioned but has not even been mentioned in the draft Declaration that will be voted upon this Friday.”

Interpretation of history, particularly religious history, must always be done with the meticulous skill of a surgeon, or the patient may die. Left to the devices of amateurs or God forbid, politicians, lots of people will remain seriously wounded or die.

Interpretation of history, at its highest calling, must be to enable the healing of the past and repair some kind of communal “wound.” The Jewish concept of “repairing the world” while avoiding humanity’s most dangerous sin – amnesia — remains a constant theme engrained in holy Scriptures and epic stories.

“Remembering rightly” is ultimately about community health and survival. Simply put, when history is deliberately distorted, we get in trouble and repeat the mistakes of the past. Continue reading at SDGLN

“Kill the Gays” Bill Author Vows To Push Bill In New Parliament

repost from Box Turtle Bulletin

Uganda’s independent Sunday Monitor this morning has published an interview with MP David Bahati, sponsor of the infamous Anti-Homosexuality Bill, in which he reiterated that the close of the 8th Parliament was simply “pressing the pause button.” He told Monitor reporter Philippa Croome that the bill’s death penalty “is something we have moved away from,” despite the fact that the death penalty has not been removed at all. In fact, the recommendation from the Parliamentary and Legal Affairs Committee, which was given jurisdiction over the bill, recommended striking the phrase “shall suffer death” and replacing it with the phrase “shall suffer the penalty provided for aggravated defilement under Section 129 of the Penal Code Act.” Section 129 itself calls for the death penalty, which means that if the committee’s recommendations were adopted the death penalty would remain in place. It just wouldn’t be so obvious to those who don’t know what Section 129 specifies. Continue Reading.

Uganda’s Current Parliamentary Session Closed Without Vote on Anti-Homosexuality Bill

photo: Andrew Regan

May 13, 2011 – After two years of dangerous discussion, the current parliamentary session in Uganda closed today without a vote on the “anti-homosexuality” bill.  The coordinator of the civil society coalition opposing the bill, Adrian Jjuuko, put it this way: “The Ugandan parliament has closed today. . . . Thus the Anti-Homosexuality Bill has to be reintroduced in the new parliament and the whole process to begin all over again.  Thank you all for the efforts and solidarity in fighting this ominous bill. The struggle may have to begin all over again, but for now, the process is over.”

Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill was introduced in 2009.  It was an affront to the lives and dignity of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Ugandans and a threat to democracy and human rights throughout the country.  Indeed, it was the most extreme attempt by any country anywhere to criminalize same-sex relations and relationships, even imposing the death penalty in certain cases.  It also would have criminalized those who provide assistance to LGBT citizens, including medical professionals, family members, pastors or civil society organizations that support the fundamental rights of the country’s LGBT community.

A broad coalition of human rights leaders in Uganda came together to denounce the bill, insisting that it was a backward-looking attempt to divert attention away from growing civil unrest in the country, and from the alarming violence unleashed by the authorities in recent weeks to suppress peaceful protests.  Uganda’s own Human Rights Commission called the bill unconstitutional and inconsistent with the country’s human rights obligations.

The bill could be introduced in the next parliament, which convenes later this month.  And although never adopted, the debate around it has already created an atmosphere of extreme hostility and led to acts of targeted violence against LGBT citizens.  But for now, the brave civil society leaders who stood up to oppose the bill should take pride in their work to protect human rights for all Ugandans.  We are also grateful for the committed response of U.S. foreign policy leaders in the White House, the State Department and Congress who have engaged in a dialogue with Ugandan authorities for nearly two years to highlight the harms caused by this proposal.

Senator Coons: Uganda should end effort to criminalize homosexuality

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 12, 2011
CONTACT: Ian Koski at 202-224-4216 or Ian_Koski@coons.senate.gov

Senator Coons: Uganda should end effort to criminalize homosexuality
Africa subcommittee chair calls on Uganda’s parliament to drop controversial legislation

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs, released the following statement today calling on Uganda’s parliament to drop the Anti Homosexuality Bill currently under consideration:

“Leaders in Uganda should end their efforts to criminalize homosexuality. The Anti Homosexuality Bill currently under consideration in the Ugandan Parliament is draconian, in contravention of international law, and simply wrong. It goes far beyond discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and makes homosexual conduct punishable by prison time or death.  It promotes a climate of oppression and fear, and violates human rights standards universally recognized by the international community.  It has also been decried by Uganda’s own Human Rights Commission, which issued a report in October 2010 concluding it was unconstitutional and inconsistent with international legal obligations.”

“I strongly support the efforts of President Obama, Secretary Clinton, and other international leaders urging Ugandan lawmakers to reject this bill and safeguard human rights for the people of Uganda.  Equality and human rights are intrinsic values that matter in America, in Uganda, and around the world. Criminalizing homosexuality moves Uganda further away from these values and further from the international community.  If the bill becomes law, it will impact Uganda’s relationship with the United States.”

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Anti-Homosexuality Bill on hold

May 11, 2011 – Parliament in Uganda adjourned today without voting on the “anti-homosexuality” bill.  The Council understands that the current lame duck parliament may convene again on Friday, May 13, and that the bill could still receive a vote in the final hours of this current parliamentary session.

The Civil Society Coalition on Human Rights and Constitutional law Uganda (CSCHRCL) in Uganda notes that the bill, once believed to have been permanently stalled, “is being used to blind the world to everything else that is going on in Uganda right now.  Alternatively that re-opening the discussion about a backwards looking and harmful proposal is symptomatic of a more general problem of weak governance.”

The Council is grateful for the leadership of the White House, State Department and U.S. Congress in speaking out against this shocking effort, and we trust that the United States will continue to hold President Museveni to his assurance that the bill will not become law.  The State Department outlined recent U.S. government engagement in a statement on Box Turtle Bulletin here.  We appreciate the ongoing commitment of U.S. foreign policy leaders to human rights for all Ugandans, including the country’s LGBT community.