Uganda Proposes New, Harsher Anti-Gay Law (367 hits)
(BlackDoctor.org) -- Being gay is already deemed a crime in Uganda – it is punishable by life imprisonment. But now, many countries and international activists are expressing outrage over the introduction of a bill in Uganda called The Anti-Homos*xuality Bill 2009 that, if passed, would condemn gay men, particularly those who are HIV positive, to death. Many fear the bill will prompt a witch-hunt against the gay Ugandan community that could ultimately develop into genocide.
Many of the underpinnings of the law seem rooted in attempts to further control HIV and AIDS infections. But while Africa has one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS infection in the world, with about two-thirds of the world’s total coming from the Sub-Sahara, Uganda, in Africa’s Eastern region, has a much lower rate, at about five or six percent. Regardless of this, the new proposed law, in addition to condemning “repeat offenders of homos*xual acts” to death, would also demand the executions of gay men found to be HIV positive, particularly gay inmates already serving time for their homos*xuality.
Even heteros*xuals would be at risk under this law: anyone with knowledge of homos*xual acts, even if they were not directly involved in them, would be sentenced to imprisonment for failing to report gay activity to the police within twenty-four hours...
