Return of anti-gay bill ‘grave assault on human rights’

The globally controversial Anti-Homosexuality Bill was reintroduced into Uganda’s Parliament overnight, leading to fears from human rights groups that it constitutes a “grave assault on human rights”.

The bill’s architect, MP David Bahati, was cheered and clapped on by other MPs when he made the move in the country’s Parliament in Kampala on Tuesday, the BBC reports.

There are fears the bill could soon pass into law after the Speaker informed the House that it would not need to be considered again by the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee.

Originally introduced in 2009, the bill was shelved last year following international condemnation by the likes of Foreign Affairs Minister Kevin Rudd, US President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron, who threatened to cut aid to African countries not respecting LGBT rights.

Bahati (pictured) has previously claimed that the bill is required as homosexuality poses a serious threat to family values and other “dangers to our children”.   

Homosexual acts are already illegal in Uganda, with many in the largely conservative nation supportive of such measures.

Although the re-introduced bill has been revised so that persons found guilty of “aggravated homosexuality” – where one of the participants is HIV-positive, disabled, a minor or a ‘serial offender’ – would no longer receive the death penalty.

The bill still seeks to criminalize the “promotion” of homosexuality, compels HIV testing in some circumstances, and imposes life sentences for entering into a same-sex marriage.

It would also be an offence for a person who is aware of any violations of the bill’s wide-ranging provisions not to report them to the authorities within 24 hours.

Michelle Kagari, Deputy Africa Programme Director at Amnesty International, said it was both alarming and disappointing that Uganda’s Parliament was once again considering the “draconian provisions”.

“If passed, it would represent a grave assault on the human rights of all Ugandans, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

“The knock-on effect of passing this bill would reach far beyond gay and lesbian people in Uganda, impeding the legitimate work of civil society, public health professionals, and community leaders,” Kagari said.

“This deplorable bill would not only violate the rights of Ugandans to life, to non-discrimination, to equality before the law, and to privacy, but would sanction hatred, violence and the persecution of a group of people based on whom they love alone.”

Attention on how Uganda treats LGBT people has received increased attention since January 2011, when well-known gay rights activist David Kato was murdered in what is believed to have been a hate crime.

Meanwhile, three African transgender and intersex rights advocacy organisations have formed an alliance to enhance the trans and intersex movement on the continent.

The organisations that make up Transitioning Africa include South African based Gender DynamiX (GDX), Uganda’s Support Initiative for People with atypical Sexual Development (SIPD), and Transgender and Intersex Africa (TIA).