This post is from HRC Legislative Counsel Ty Cobb; photos by Media Center Intern Arthur Hartnett:
Last week, HRC joined the Council for Global Equality outside the Ugandan Embassy on Thursday to protest a contemptable bill that would outlaw homosexuality. Bill No. 18, introduced in the Ugandan Parliament in October, would make homosexuality an offense punishable by death in the country. The Council for Global Equality asserts that Bill No. 18 is “undoubtedly one of the most homophobic pieces of legislation ever conceived.”
Some protesters were invited into the Embassy to discuss Bill No. 18 with Ugandan Embassy officials, including the Deputy Head of Mission, Ambassador Charles Ssentongo. In these discussions, Ambassador Ssentongo was reported to have emphasized that as a democracy, Uganda could not limit debate on a private member’s proposal, and that President Museveni had not taken a position on the issue.
As a brief overview, Bill No. 18 would:
- increase the penalty for consensual homosexual conduct from 14 years to life in prison;
- limit the distribution of HIV/AIDS prevention information through a provision criminalizing the “promotion of homosexuality;”
- create a crime of “aggravated homosexuality,” punishing anyone who is HIV-positive with death for having consensual same-sex relations, even if the relations are informed and safe and regardless of whether the person is even aware of his or her HIV status; and
- expose anyone in Uganda, including HIV/AIDS outreach experts, to a criminal sentence for not reporting to the government within 24-hours anyone who engages in homosexual activity.
HRC strongly supports the Council for Global Equality’s efforts and its condemnation of the Ugandan “Anti-Homosexual” bill.
We are a proud founding member of the Council for Global Equality which brings together international human rights activists, foreign policy experts, LGBT leaders, philanthropists and corporate officials to encourage a clearer and stronger American voice on human rights concerns impacting LGBT communities around the world. To learn more about Bill No. 18 or the Council for Global Equality, visit www.globalequality.org.
![HRC-BACKSTORY [BLOG]](http://174.121.110.138/~hrcorg/hrcbackstory/images/logo/hrc-backstory.jpg){kind=logo}
