Here is 4 minutes of it…
You can listen to the entire interview here.
Hmm, he might run again in 2016?
Museveni doesn’t believe in promotion of homosexuality – sounds like Bahati.
Tag: anti-homosexuality bill 2009
Petition targets Citibank’s and Barclays’ Ugandan operations; calls for banks to condemn anti-gay bill
At Change.org, Citibank customer Collin Burton posted a petition aimed at Citibank and Barclays banks. Both banks have significant operations in Uganda. From the petition:
With the “Kill the Gays” bill looming in Uganda’s parliament, Citibank and Barclays have unique and necessary voices that could help stop this bill in its tracks. Their presence in Uganda is significant, and their voices in opposition to the Anti-Homosexuality Bill could have a profound impact in keeping LGBT people safe in Uganda.
Ask Citibank and Barclays to publicly condemn Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” bill, and send a loud message to Ugandan legislators that criminalizing homosexuality with lifetime prison sentences and the death penalty won’t be supported by major international businesses.
I wondered when this might happen. Western companies doing business in Uganda will have a hard time helping their GLBT employees feel safe in an environment where the government can break up peaceful meetings and jail employees for private conduct. Western customers of those companies might want to direct their funds elsewhere here if there is no voice of concern or outrage.
Museveni says gays not persecuted; forgets persecution last week
What a short memory.
Uganda’s President says gays aren’t persecuted in his country just days after his Ethics Minister raided a GLBT conference and chased activists out of the hotel fearing arrest.
Note to the rest of the world – The President of Uganda wants you to subscribe to his version of reality where disrupting and threatening a peaceful assembly is not persecution.
Uganda Hires Firm to Burnish Image Internationally
Really? Uganda hired a firm to polish up the nation’s image around the world. Watch:
I don’t envy this firm.
Because of David Bahati and those who support him, Uganda is known around the world for the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. The attention from this bill leads to considerations of corruption and other human rights abuses.
If the bill passes, I suspect pressure will be brought to bear on corporations doing business in Uganda such as Citibank, and Barclays Bank (UK). Various hotel chains doing business there will be targeted. If Starbucks still imports coffee from Uganda, I can imagine an effort to have Starbucks find coffee from somewhere else.
Uganda Human Rights Coalition Opposes the Anti-Homosexuality Bill
A broad coalition of human rights advocacy organizations in Uganda issued a press release late yesterday. Here is the press release in full:
Press Statement
Uganda: Parliament Should Reject Anti-Homosexuality Bill
16th February 2012
On Tuesday 7th February 2012, the Anti-Homosexuality Bill (2009) was reintroduced to the Parliament of Uganda. If passed, this draft legislation would violate the human rights of all Ugandans, and should immediately be dropped, the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project (EHAHRDP), Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI), The Human Rights Centre Uganda (HRCU), and Human Rights Network-Uganda (HURINET) said today.
Hon. David Bahati’s widely condemned private member’s bill is one of ten bills saved and reintroduced from the previous Parliament. The bill had its first reading on 7th February 2012 and was referred to the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee for scrutiny. It is understood that the bill was re-tabled in its original form but that amendments recommended by the Committee last year will be incorporated. Although Hon. Bahati is reported in the media to have said that the death penalty for ‘serial’ acts of homosexuality will be dropped, this is not yet confirmed. EHAHRDP, FHRI, HRCU and HURINET express their concern at the lack of clarity surrounding the parliamentary process and contents of the bill, and call on Parliament to clarify on this matter.
EHAHRDP, FHRI, HRCU and HURINET recall the submission by the Uganda Human Rights Commission in its 2010 annual report that “some of the provisions in the bill are unnecessary, and that most of them violate international human rights standards.” The rejection of certain international standards envisaged in the 2009 bill sets a dangerous precedent regarding Uganda’s respect for the human rights commitments it has made.
The bill contains harsh provisions which would seriously restrict the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly and would threaten the ability of some human rights organisations to continue operating. Already, on 14th February the Minister of State for Ethics and Integrity, Hon. Rev. Fr. Lokodo Simon, ordered the unconstitutional shutdown of a capacity-building workshop organized by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) human rights defenders in Entebbe. The bill and such actions by government representatives reinforce the more general threats to civil society space in Uganda, such as the onerous regulation of public meetings and discussions sought to be introduced with the Public Order Management Bill.
As well as threatening the safety of LGBTI people generally, the Anti-Homosexuality Bill also jeopardizes the security of human rights defenders working on these issues. The re-tabling of the bill just days after the first anniversary of the murder of LGBTI activist and EHAHRDP founding member, David Kato, is a stark reminder of the insecurity this bill has already caused in Uganda.
More generally, the bill would have a wide-reaching and disturbing effect on the freedoms of the majority of Ugandans. If health professionals, spiritual leaders, teachers, business people, landlords, and many others in positions built upon trust and confidentiality fail to disclose to the authorities persons they suspect of being homosexual, under the provisions of this bill would also be targeted for prosecution themselves.
EHAHRDP, FHRI, HRCU and HURINET welcome the statement issued by the Minister of State for Ethics and Integrity on Wednesday 8th February that the bill “does not enjoy the support of the Prime Minister or the Cabinet.” We call on the authorities to ensure the physical safety of LGBTI community members and human rights activists and fulfill the commitment made by Uganda during the Universal Periodic Review in October 2011 to “take immediate concrete steps to stop discrimination and assaults against LGBT persons.”
EHAHRDP, FHRI, HRCU and HURINET call on the Members of Parliament, and all Ugandans, to reject this discriminatory and divisive bill and refuse to be distracted from the real pressing issues facing the country at this time, such as the debate over the exploitation of Uganda’s oil resources.
For more information, please contact:
Hassan Shire, Executive Director, East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project, on [email protected] or +256 772 753 753
Livingstone Sewanyana, Executive Director, Foundation for Human Rights Initiative, on [email protected] or +256 414 510 263/498
Margaret Sekaggya, Executive Director, The Human Rights Centre Uganda, on [email protected] or +256 414 266 186
Mohammed Ndifuna, Chief Executive Officer, Human Rights Network-Uganda, on [email protected] or +256 714 419 229