Following a highly charged and chaotic session Uganda’s parliament on Tuesday approved comprehensive anti-gay legislation that suggests harsh new penalties for same-sex relationships. After the final vote, the speaker of the house, Annet Anita Among, declared, ” The ayes have it,” adding, “The bill passed in record time”.
The Ugandan parliament was scheduled to deliberate on ant- gay legislation on Tuesday. The legislation on calls for severe new penalties for same-sex relationships in a nation where homosexuality is already against the law. Anyone in the conservative East African country who participate in same-sex activity or who openly identifies as LGBTQ could be sentenced to up to 10 years in jail under the proposed law.
The Anti- Homosexuality Bil is prepared and will be presented to parliament for a vote, according to Robina Rwakoojo, chair of the group that has been looking into the legislation.
Widespread public support for the law exists in Uganda and civic society response has muted as a result of years of civic space being reduced under President Yoweri Museveni’s increasingly authoritarian control.
Earlier this month, Frank Mugisha, executive director of sexual minorities Ugandan prominent gay rights organization whose operations were shut down by the government the previous year, claimed he had already received a deluge of calls from LGBTQ people regarding the new law.
According to police, six males were detained last week in the Southern lakeside town of jinja for” practicing homosexuality”.
The Ugandan government passed legislation in 2014 that mandated life in prison for people caught having gay sex
