Uganda and Kenya are striking laws to protect the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (L.G.B.T.Q.) people, whose genders and sexualities are already treated with hostility in the conservative East African nations and, broadly, across Africa. Same-sex relations are illegal in more than half of the continent’s 55 countries, punishable by death or lengthy prison sentences. Nearly half of the countries around the world that have outlawed homosexuality are located on the African continent.
After almost seven hours of debate, Ugandan lawmakers approved the Anti-Homosexuality Act on March 21st, ordering harsh penalties for anyone who engages in same-sex activity – including sentences of life in prison and even execution for being found to have had sexual relations with someone of the same sex. Uganda is one of the 33 African countries which have already banned same-sex relationships, but this new law appears to be the first passed to outlaw identifying as L.G.B.T.Q. If President Yoweri Museveni approves the bill, homosexuality will be regarded as a crime, with anyone “promoting homosexuality” or helping an L.G.B.T.Q. person able to be charged under conspiracy to engage in homosexuality. Authorities will be able to target gay Ugandans, who will face more legal discrimination and mob violence even as journalists, lawyers, and civilians have already been attacked and jailed under Museveni’s rule. Ugandan prisons will quickly overflow with innocents.
The prospect is deeply troubling, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said, urging Museveni not to move the bill into law. The greater United Nations and the United States have also called for Museveni to reject what they called an appalling anti-gay bill.
Museveni, who has described gay people as “deviants,” appears less than likely to listen. “Western countries should stop wasting the time of humanity by trying to impose their practices on other people,” he said. Ironically, homosexuality in Uganda was first criminalized under colonial-era laws, but Uganda has become known for its lack of tolerance towards expressions of sexuality which subvert its strict views.
In Kenya, meanwhile, President William Ruto has condemned the Supreme Court’s ruling to uphold verdicts by lower courts stating that the government could not lawfully refuse to register an organization called the National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. Ruto, among other political and religious leaders, has said that the court cannot allow same-sex couples to marry because it must “respect Christian and Islamic values.”
People should not be treated as criminals simply for existing. The systemic trajectories embraced by Presidents Museveni and Ruto will codify discrimination and violations of human rights, along with taking an immeasurable step backwards in the fight against H.I.V./A.I.D.S.
