According to today’s agenda, the Anti-Homosexuality Bill will be the next bill considered by Uganda’s Parliament. Today, the legislative body is slated to act on two bills relating to the oil industry and the Accountants Bill. These bills have been on the agenda for several days and should be nearing a final vote. Given the prior work done on those three bills, the anti-gay bill could come up as soon as tomorrow.
It appears that Speaker Kadaga has given the Anti-Homosexuality Bill higher priority than other business since it was first listed last week. Note the position of the bill on today’s order paper:
NOTICE OF BUSINESS TO FOLLOW
- THE ANTI-HOMOSEXUALITY BILL, 2012
- MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION OF PARLIAMENT TO URGE GOVERNMENT TO BAIL OUT SEMBULE STEEL MILLS LTD FROM THE INTENDED SALE OF ITS PROPERTIES
- PRESENTATION, CONSIDERATION AND ADOPTION OF THE REPORT ON THE ADHOC COMMITTEE INVESTIGATING THE ENERGY SECTOR
- THE PUBLIC ORDER MANAGEMENT BILL, 2012
Last week on the listing of business to come, the anti-gay bill was listed third after the motion to bail out the steel mill and the adoption of the report on the energy sector. Today the bill is listed ahead of those two items and is the first item to be considered next.
Given the scope of the oil bills and the Accountants Bill, it is not certain that the anti-gay measure will come up tomorrow. However, it appears that the bill will now be the next bill considered after the current business is resolved.
This is ‘technicality’, really: anyone claiming that the (‘formal’) death penalty has been dropped must remember that the Tashobya Committee has no power to remove it; that is a job for the Parliament as a whole.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2012/11/28/us-government-ugandas-anti-gay-legislation-still-contains-death-penalty-despite-earlier-reports/
Of course the (‘formal’) death penalty is not the issue (it never really was – it just helped to give the Bill a higher international profile). Removing it does not realistically change the Bill.
Meanwhile, ‘Pastor’ Solomon Mmale and others are hoping the Bill will go away: http://www.theafricareport.com/society-and-culture/homosexuality-bill-not-necessary-religious-groups-and-opposition-politicians.html
Mmale’s main ‘problem’ with the Bill is that the publicity it has generated has strengthened the campaign for fair treatment of LGB/T/I persons. He’s quite right – it has!
True, but the Bahati Bill is uniquely appalling in its all-embracing and totalitarian nature (even without the ‘formal’ death penalty). And it is not yet law …
The ‘Uganda first’ approach is a ‘worst first’ approach.
This attention to Uganda hides a larger problem. There are 78 countries that have criminalized sexual orientation; five (plus two regions in other countries) make it punishable by death. The current list: http://www.slowlyboiledfrog.com/2012/11/the-attention-paid-uganda-hides-larger.html
This is ‘technicality’, really: anyone claiming that the (‘formal’) death penalty has been dropped must remember that the Tashobya Committee has no power to remove it; that is a job for the Parliament as a whole.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2012/11/28/us-government-ugandas-anti-gay-legislation-still-contains-death-penalty-despite-earlier-reports/
Of course the (‘formal’) death penalty is not the issue (it never really was – it just helped to give the Bill a higher international profile). Removing it does not realistically change the Bill.
Meanwhile, ‘Pastor’ Solomon Mmale and others are hoping the Bill will go away: http://www.theafricareport.com/society-and-culture/homosexuality-bill-not-necessary-religious-groups-and-opposition-politicians.html
Mmale’s main ‘problem’ with the Bill is that the publicity it has generated has strengthened the campaign for fair treatment of LGB/T/I persons. He’s quite right – it has!
True, but the Bahati Bill is uniquely appalling in its all-embracing and totalitarian nature (even without the ‘formal’ death penalty). And it is not yet law …
The ‘Uganda first’ approach is a ‘worst first’ approach.
This attention to Uganda hides a larger problem. There are 78 countries that have criminalized sexual orientation; five (plus two regions in other countries) make it punishable by death. The current list: http://www.slowlyboiledfrog.com/2012/11/the-attention-paid-uganda-hides-larger.html