Ugandan people who support gay rights want other countries to put more pressure on Uganda’s government to get rid of a law against gay people. Uganda’s Constitutional Court said no to canceling the law on Wednesday.
Activist Frank Mugisha said that the ruling on Tuesday was unfair and very bad.
Mugisha said that this decision means donors should give less money to Uganda. No one should give money for hurting LGBTQ+ people and violating human rights.
The court said it’s okay to punish people for being gay. They can get the death penalty or go to prison for a long time if they are accused of being gay.
Last year, President Yoweri Museveni approved the Anti-Homosexuality Act. Many people in East Africa support it, but rights groups and others outside of the country strongly disagree with it.
The court said that LGBT people should not be treated unfairly when trying to get medicine, but the US Secretary of State said that this isn’t enough to protect their rights.
“He said that the rest of the AHA is very dangerous for the people of Uganda, especially LGBTQI+ Ugandans and their friends. It also hurts public health, limits freedom for citizens, ruins Uganda’s image in the world, and makes it harder to get foreign money for the country. ”
Nicholas Opiyo, a person who fights for people’s rights in Uganda, said he was unhappy with the outcome.
“We have to follow the court’s decision, but we strongly disagree with it and how they came to that decision. ” Opiyo said we went to court hoping it would defend human rights by following the law, instead of listening to people’s feelings and unclear cultural values.
In Uganda, being gay was already against the law because of a rule from when it was ruled by another country. If someone is found guilty, they can be sent to prison for the rest of their life.
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LGBTQ+ rights advocates demand increased international scrutiny of Uganda
