Gay Rights
High lighting the struggle of the Gay
community in
Compilation of citations on the condition of
homosexuals in
1.
Legal
representatives may find the following compilation useful in appeals against
refusal of asylum to gay Ugandans, and in other claims, for instance of
compensation against assets held by Ugandan officials, in European and
common-law jurisdictions. The compilation in no way of itself constitutes
however an opinion, expert or otherwise, on the risks to which any individual
may be exposed by her or his removal from to
2.
Citations are
arranged under the following headings:
A. Law
and policy: Risk of Arrest and Imprisonment of homosexuals;
B. Security
services: reported connections between gay activism and subversion;
C. Risk
of torture and extra-judicial killing of homosexuals:
The torture of homosexuals;
Risk of rape in prison;
Patterns of torture;
D. Risk
of HIV-infection in prison;
E. Implications for public health of the
Ugandan Government’s criminalisation of homosexuality
F. Risk
of extra-judicial killing:
Mob violence against Ugandan homosexuals;
Mob violence in
Relocation;
G. References
to the persecution of Ugandan homosexuals;
H. Support
of the Ugandan churches and State for violence against homosexuals:
State support for violence against
homosexuals;
Ugandan churches’ support for
government and societal discrimination against homosexuals;
Covert church support for
homosexuals;
I. Imprisonment
of those deported to Uganda.
A. Law and policy: Risk of arrest and
imprisonment of homosexuals
3.
“One example
of continuing discrimination came from
4.
“Same-sex
relationships are criminalized in
5.
"According to an
article dated 30 November 2004, by 365Gay.com published on the Sodomy Laws
website...The government has
recently called on police to crack down on homosexual activity.”[3]
6.
“On July 5,
[2005,] by a vote of 111 to 17 with three abstentions, the Ugandan parliament
approved a proposed constitutional
amendment stating that ‘marriage is lawful only if entered into between a
man and a woman,’ and that ‘it is unlawful for same-sex couples to marry.’…A
parliamentary spokesman said that specific
criminal penalties will be enacted later when the Ugandan penal code is
revised.
“’Uganda
already imposes draconian prison sentences on people who engage in homosexual
conduct,’ said Scott Long, director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and
Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch. ‘New criminal penalties against people who
dare to marry can only have one purpose: to codify prejudice against same-sex couples.’
Same-sex
sexual relations are criminalized in
”The proposed constitutional change follows months
of state-promoted controversy about homosexuality in
“In 1994, the United Nations Human Rights
Committee found, in the case of Toonen v.
7.
“The house
considered and passed the Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3, 2005. The day
spelt doom and gloom for the gay and lesbian community as the legislation
making body effectively outlawed
homosexuality. Parliament overwhelmingly approved an amendment to Article
31, providing for complete rejection and criminalisation of same sex
marriages.”[5]
8.
“To further
afflict its homosexual community, one parliamentarian said specific jail terms for offenders are to be laid out in revisions to
the Ugandan penal code at a later date.”[6]
9.
”Fifteen
homosexuals arrested from the western part of Uganda, Masindi, have been given
life prison sentences. Homosexuality in Uganda is illegal and punishable
with a maximum sentence of life in prison. The homosexuals where rounded up
after long surveillance operation in Masindi town. When asked why they were
given a life sentence without a court trial .The investigating officer Mr Mark
Ruhinda said “no one could sit in court and listen to these sick people
explaining why they like fellow men, this
was a decision that came from the top. If I were you, I would stop this
investigation.”
”Authorities have confirmed that this is part of their on
going investigation to crack down on homosexuals. Two weeks ago on 13th April 2006, the
Government spokesman Dr James Nsaba
Buturo [Minister of Information] has promised to arrest gay Ugandans known
to be operating [a] church. Its obvious from the recent crack down that the
government is making good of there promise. Doctor Nsaba Buturo said “This is should send a loud and clear
message to all they gay people in
Uganda, we will find them and lock them up for life” This is the first time the government
publicly confirmed that they are cracking down on homosexuality and handing
down sentences. “I do not think we have seen the end of this complete disregard
for human rights” said James Mutamba a United Nations social worker.”[7]
10.
“Uganda: Intimidation of lesbian and gay activists: Amnesty International
is concerned about the on-going intimidation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) rights activists in Uganda. The latest incident follows
steps taken by Ugandan law-makers in July 2005, who voted for a constitutional
amendment to criminalize marriage between persons of the same sex.
“Activist Victor Juliet
Mukasa, Chairperson of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), fears for her safety after
her house was raided on the night of 20 July 2005. Local government officials
in a suburb of the capital city, Kampala, entered her house in her absence and
seized documents and other material, apparently looking for “incriminating
evidence” relating to the activities of SMUG. No search warrant was produced on
demand. The organization advocates for the promotion and respect of all rights
contained in the Uganda constitution and in international human rights treaties
for lesbians, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, including the right not to
be discriminated against.
“Another lesbian activist, who was in Juliet’s house
on the night of the raid, was arbitrarily arrested and detained by local
government officials and then taken to the police station. She was subjected to
humiliating and degrading treatment, in breach of her right to liberty, security and inviolability of person and
to privacy. No charges were pressed against her and she was released, on the
condition that she reported back to the police in the company of the
chairperson of SMUG the following morning of 21 July.
”Amnesty International
is concerned that the above incidents add to a pattern of abuse of their right
not to be discriminated against on the basis of sexual orientation, the right
to freedom, security and inviolability of the human person…”[8]
11.
“Ugandan
president Museveni announced on September 28 [1999] a nationwide sweep for
gays, following a media frenzy about two men getting married…Lwabaayi and
friends were arrested October 6. Ugandan police also raided their newsletter
offices and seized subscription record which list addresses for 167 other gay
Ugandan men. Lwabaayi is now back in Vancouver after enduring imprisonment and torture.”[9]
B. Security
services: reported connections between gay activism and subversion
12.
The minister
of information, Dr James Nsaba Buturo, yesterday said …he was aware of a letter
reportedly written by the minister of
internal affairs, Dr Ruhakana Rugunda, to the police, urging them to crack down
on gay groups.”[10]
13.
The State
Minister for Information, Dr James Nsaba Buturo, has urged the East African
governments to harmonise the Information Technology industry. He said for a
meaningful regional integration, the member states must have harmonised policy,
regulatory and legal framework in various sectors that span all the member
states… “We need to come up with a joint policy to counter the evils of technology like homosexuality and pornographic trade
that are morally repugnant to the majority of our peoples,” said Buturo.”[11]
14.
“Police in
the United Kingdom arrested two Ugandan gay activists on the weekend of May 6
at a gay gathering in East London. Lubowa Richard and Kizza Musinguzi had
organised a party to launch the Gay Rights Uganda UK branch. Police got a tip
off from the neighbours who at first complained of the very loud music from the
party only to find a bloody fierce fight between two men fighting for another
man. Musinguzi is the coordinator of Gay Rights Uganda while Lubowa a.k.a.
Kido, is the spokesman. The couple was later released without charge but with a
caution. Our services say that Gay Rights Uganda, which also has branches in
Boston and Sweden, is planning to open up a branch here very soon. We don’t
want to be the one to remind them that homosexuality in an offence punishable
by law in Uganda. At least Police Spokesman Patrick Onyango said so and that,
‘Musinguzi and Lubowa’s activities are not welcome here and they will be crashed [sic for ‘crushed’] if they go ahead with their campaign.’…Not
our words.”[12]
C. Risk of Torture
The
torture of homosexuals
15.
“Francesco
Mascini…the first secretary at the royal Netherlands embassy, said they had
received information that some gays
were being tortured in some detention centres. He was speaking at the
launch of the Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) annual report.”[13]
16.
“The
Government yesterday blasted the Netherlands embassy First Secretary, Francesco
Mascini, over his call to debate
homosexuality. The internal affairs minister is to meet diplomats to
“remind them about diplomatic behaviour”, state minister for information Dr
Nsaba Buturo said yesterday at he weekly Government press briefing at
Nakasero….Buturo said diplomats accredited to Uganda had made it a habit to
make public statements of a political and moral nature on matters that were a
preserve of Ugandans. He said donating money did not justify their attempts to
force Ugandans to accept practices offensive to their culture…”Lecturing
Ugandans through the press is an affront
to our sovereignty,” he added.”[14]
17.
“Activists
also point to illegal detentions, convictions without trials, rape to ‘remedy’
lesbianism and cases of torture…MUSLA’s[15]
president, 28-year old student Christopher Kalima, says he has been arrested 11
times – not including the times the police ‘called him up for a chat’. He says
that when he was first arrested, at age 18 [in 1994], he was blindfolded and
carted off to a secret location. ‘Sometimes, they flogged us,’ Kalima says mater-of-factly, sipping on a beer. ‘We
were made to sleep with dead bodies
because sometimes they torture people and they die. You sleep in there with
them, to torture you emotionally, you understand?’ The authorities made sure
Kalima did. ‘I was released with serious warnings – that if you ever get in
here again, you’re going to die. I was given strict orders not to say anything
that happened to me’. Some MUSLA members might not have been so lucky. Kalima
says that, despite being warned off by authorities, MUSLA is looking for six
colleagues who have ‘disappeared’” [16]
18.
“Amnesty
International has taken up the cause of three Christian homosexuals jailed and
beaten in Uganda for their sexual orientation, who have been finding refuge in
an East Vancouver Anglican church…The three homosexual Ugandan Christians…were arrested, beaten and verbally abused in a
September 1999 crackdown on homosexuals by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni,
according to Amnesty International. One of the women was raped while in
prison…A summary of the case of the Ugandan homosexuals who were jailed in
Africa is recounted on an Amnesty International web site devoted to stopping
arrest and torture based on gender or sexual orientation (http://www.amnesty.ca/stoptorture/acttorturelaws.htm).”2
19.
“In September
1999 President Yoweri Museveni publicly ordered the police to look for
homosexuals, lock them up and charge them. The following month, five people
were arrested at a meeting in Kampala by army and police officers. They were accused of being homosexual and
held in illegal detention centres, army barracks and police stations for up to
two weeks before being released without charge. All five were tortured. One
of those arrested said ‘they tortured me by kicking me on my stomach and
slapping my face until it bled. I was made to sleep in a small toilet that was
so dirty as it was the only toilet used by all the inmates. The next day I was
told to clean the toilet for one week, twice a day, using my bare hands.’”[17]
20.
”In September
1999, in the wake of publicity in the Ugandan media about an alleged ‘gay
marriage’ in Kampala, President Yoweri Museveni announced to the press that he
had ordered the Criminal Investigations Department "to look for
homosexuals, lock them up and charge them". The effect of this statement
on the lives of the five activists was devastating.
”Following the President’s announcement, the five
friends met at Christine’s home in early October 1999 to discuss strategy.
Somehow, the military found out about their meeting. At around 10pm, eight
armed men burst into the room and arrested the five friends. Christine
recalled, ‘No one could speak. We were all shocked... They tied black cloths on
our heads and led us to the cars.’…
”Rodney was taken to a
military barracks. He recalled, ‘I was kicked in the chest four times. I was
slapped. I was also shown electric cable that could be used on me if I did not
tell them about our organisation...’ He was held with a large number of
military prisoners. ‘Learning that I was not a soldier and I was a gay
activist they tortured me by kicking me
on my stomach and slapping my face until I bled. I was made to sleep in a
small toilet. The next day I was told to clean the toilet for one week, twice a
day using my bare hands... I lost my trust in God. I came to believe that it is
true that God hates those who are gay, as the local church claims and
preaches.’”[18]
21.
“Fear has been a constant factor in John’s
life ever since he was detained and tortured in October 1999. ‘I was living
with another guy. The police received a tip-off that we were gay. Officials
from the Directorate of Military Intelligence came to our house at 2am. They
arrested us and took us to one of their safe houses. They kept on urinating on us. They didn’t give us
any food and didn’t light the room. Then they put two dead rotting bodies in our small cell. Later they separated us and
started interrogating us. They thought we were being funded by a foreign
organization and they wanted the information. I protested. I grabbed one of the
guys by the collar and started fighting with him. He called the other guys in. They
hurt me so much. They flogged me, and
then they poured a chemical solution on me. My skin started rotting after
we were moved out of the detention house. I had to take medication and
antibiotics for sex months. But I was left with scars on my back and my arms.”[19]
Risk of
rape in prison
22.
“Screams of a
young man – a prisoner – on a mid-October night ended abruptly at Luzira Prison
in Kampala. Fellow inmates of 23-year-old Benjamin Buloba thought he had
finally fallen asleep after suffering an agonising stomach upset. Yet when day
broke on October 15, Buloba was dead – just days after entering prison…Luzira’s
Upper Prison, where Buloba spent his last night, was designed to hold 600
people but today it holds more than 3,000.
Dark shadow: The fate of Buloba has refocused the spotlight
on the poor state of Uganda’s prisons, especially following claims in the press
that he was gang raped by fellow inmates
before he died…
“Ms Mary Kaddu, the assistant commissioner of
prisons of charge of public relations, said by the time he was committed to
prison, Buloba was already ill. ‘Fellow prisoners said he kept putting toilet
paper in his anus,’ Kaddu told 93.3 KFM recently. ‘On the day he died, he did
not eat and had diarrhoea. A prisoner who went to the toilet found he had
collapsed with faeces all over. His friends picked him up and cleaned him but
he kept crying ‘oh my stomach, oh my stomach.’ The prison authorities,
however, have not presented evidence that the prisoner had complained of a
stomach illness or whether his complaints had been registered at the prison’s
sick bay. Their report records that Buloba was ‘reported well but died
suddenly’. The cause of death was said to be respiratory failure secondary to
tuberculosis. ‘He was found with water in his lungs – about one litre,’ said Dr
Johnson Byabushaija, the deputy commissioner general of prisons, speaking on
the same KFM programme as Kaddu. He hastened to add that the mortality rate in
prisons has reduced (now at between 1 and 1.2 percent annually) but that most
deaths are due to ‘immuno-suppression syndrome related to HIV/Aids’.
“In Buloba’s case, a lot more has been written
about his condition. Sources at Mulago hospital say at the time his body was
received, there was evidence of ‘trauma of the rectum’ possibly due to sexual
rape. Ex-prisoners, some of whom called into the radio talk show, say that
homosexuality – consensual or not – is common in the jails but authorities are
reluctant to address it. One such caller, Mr Peter Okodu, who said he served time
in Luzira, claimed he witnessed sodomy. He blamed prison authorities for not doing enough to protect inmates from sexual
violence from within the cells…Dr Byabashaija…admits that the prison system
is resource strapped and lacks the personnel to properly ensure the rights of
inmates especially from
prisoner-on-prisoner violence. According to ex-prisoners, warders in
charge of cells stand outside after final lock down leaving the prisons under
the control of gangs inside.”15
23.
“There have
also been incidents where imprisonment jail
rape has been used as punishment for those who publicly declared their
homosexuality. Consequently, many still live in constant fear of being
tortured [if] they were found out to be homosexual”6
24.
“A summary of
the case of the case of the Ugandan homosexuals who were jailed in Africa is
recounted on an Amnesty International web site devoted to stopping arrest and
torture based on gender or sexual orientation (http://www.amnesty.ca/stoptorture/acttorturelaws.htm). The web site quotes Christine, who now lives
in Vancouver, describing what happened to [her] when she was interrogated
(and later raped after being left alone
in a prison with three male detainees).”2
25.
"’Coming
midnight, they said ‘we want to show you something’. They took my clothes off and raped me. I remember being raped by two of
them, then I passed out.{2 Statement given to Amnesty
International, March 2000}
“Christine {3 Not her real name.
Pseudonyms have been used for all the Ugandan activists referred to in this
chapter} was tortured in a secret detention centre in Uganda. She was raped
after being left alone in a room with three male detainees. She was detained
because she is a lesbian and in Uganda homosexuality is not just a social
taboo, it is a criminal offence…
”When they took the blindfold off, Christine found
herself in a secret detention centre. She was stripped naked, beaten and
threatened with rape by the soldiers holding her. She was then taken to another
detention centre where she was interrogated about the human rights group the
friends had set up and about her sexuality. ‘They asked me why I was not
married. I told them I was not interested in marriage. They asked me if I knew
homosexuality was taboo in Africa. I kept quiet. They said it was a criminal
offence and I could get a 10-year or life sentence. In the middle of that a
policewoman came in and said ‘I heard there was a lesbian here, can you do [to
me] what you do to women?’ I held my head high so she slapped me.’…
”Norah was taken to another military barracks. ‘I
was kept in a small filthy room with bats in the ceiling. I was by myself in
that room for about five hours, then three men came in and started interrogating
me. These men were so cruel and intimidating, it was unbearable... I was also beaten, abused both sexually and physically.
My clothes were ripped off. Nasty remarks were made that I should just be
punished for denying men what is rightfully theirs, and that who do I think I
am to do what the president feels to be wrong. They even suggested that they
should show me what I am missing by taking turns on me.’{6 Statement
given to Amnesty International, October 1999}”13
Patterns
of torture
26.
“A report by
Human Rights Watch this year [2004] accuses the government of using detention
centres for deliberate torture of what is described as political prisoners. ‘An
informal survey at Kigo Prison near Kampala where ‘political’ prisoners are
held, indicated in June 2003 that 90
percent of detainees/prisoners had been tortured during their prior
detention by state military and security agencies’, HRW claimed. The rights
group says that since political torture is illegal and therefore hidden, it
provided an environment in which ‘other unlawful acts are carried out’
including sexual abuse and rape.”[20]
27.
“Victims have been seriously beaten with
rifle butts, sticks, electric cables and other objects. Other methods of
torture include tying the hands and feet behind the victim (‘kandoya’), keeping
detainees in pits in the ground; exposing the victim with mouth open to a water
spigot, and inflicting injury to the penis and testicles. Withholding or
denying necessary medical attention has resulted in more severe, or even permanent,
injury…
“Among the agencies against which credible
allegations of torture have been made are the following:
-
the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Force (UPDF) and its military intelligence branch,
Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI)
-
Internal Security Organization (ISO)…
-
Joint Anti Terrorism Task Force (JAT), a joint body of CMI, ISO, and other
security agencies
-
Violent Crime Crack Unit (VCCU), a special unit comprised of CMI, ISO, and
other security agencies, replacing Operation Wembley, tasked with stopping
crime
-
the police and its Criminal Investigation Department [CID]
“The most
serious abuses seem to occur when suspects are arrested and held by the army
and its intelligence service, the CMI, as well as JAT [Joint Anti-terrorism Task Force] and the VCCU…
“Human Rights Watch and FHRI[21]
have also found that the army, CMI, JAT and VCCU torture or ill-treat suspects frequently. As illustrated below,
suspects are often detained by one of these agencies incommunicado in a safe
house or barracks, and tortured or ill-treated to make a confession or to
punish them for refusing to confess. Later, they are taken to a police station
where they often suffer less abuse, and where the confession is taken again,
sometimes in front of those who conducted the torture…
“Human rights observers have been denied access to
unofficial place of detention. While the government readily allows independent
observers to visit regular prisons and police stations, it is very difficult
to get access to military barracks, CMI facilities, and other ‘ungazetted’ and thus illegal places of
detention such as the JAT detention facility in Kololo, Kampala, where many
victims claim to have been tortured.”
“Torture
of alleged common criminals by the VCCU
“Suspected common criminals are frequently
tortured, in particular when they are detained by the VCCU…In some cases,
suspects were not only beaten, but subjected to other types of torture. In
November 2003, John W., a twenty-two year-old man from Mengo, Kampala, was
eating lunch when VCCU officers came to arrest the person sitting next to him.
He told a FHRI researcher that he asked where they were taking the man, which
angered the officers so that they arrested him as well. During his one week
detention at VCCU headquarters, he had his right
small finger chopped off by a VCCU officer. VCCU agents also beat him with
wires on the chest, and he still has scars from the beatings. Later John W. was
transferred to the Central Police Station in Kampala, where he had been held
for four months at the time of the interview.”[22]
28.
“’Torture
persists in Uganda because no one is investigated or punished for it. If the
government were serious about stopping torture, it would end this state of impunity.’”[23]
D. Risk of HIV infection in prison
29.
“According to
the Prisons Department, 230 inmates died in custody between January and October
[2004]. Approximately 60 percent of
these deaths were due to HIV/AIDS-related diseases”[24]
30.
“Dr Johnson
Byabushaija, the deputy commissioner general of prisons…hastened to add that
the mortality rate in prisons has reduced (now at between 1 and 1.2 percent
annually) but that most deaths are due
to ‘immuno-suppression syndrome related to HIV/Aids’.”15
31.
The acting director of the prisons health
service, Dr Alex Kakoraki, on Monday said…homosexuality was high in prison and yet condoms cannot be supplied to
inmates. “Homosexuality is an unacceptable in our communities and shouldn’t
be practised,” he said.”[25]
E. Implications for public health of the
Ugandan Government’s criminalisation of homosexuality
32.
“The minister of information, Dr James Nsaba
Buturo, yesterday said he had written to UNAIDS and the Uganda Aids Commission
to protest the inclusion of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
groups because they are illegal under Uganda’s laws. The Uganda AIDS
Commission has denied they are developing such a policy but the government
position is very clear, homosexuality is illegal. Buturo said he was aware of a
letter reportedly written by the minister of internal affairs, Dr Ruhakana
Rugunda, to the police, urging them to crack down on gay groups.”[26]
33.
“A deadly consequence of denying that
homosexuality exists in Uganda is that the national HIV/AIDS programme makes no
provision for sexual minorities, despite scientific evidence that gay men are
more susceptible to HIV transmission than any other group…
“The
politics of pretence: Nobody knows how prevalent the HI[V] virus is among
gay Ugandan men – there are no statistics, as sexual minorities have never had
a place in the government’s fight against HIV/AIDS…
“”There’s no mention of gays and
lesbians in the national strategic framework, because the practice of
homosexuality is illegal,” said James Kigozi, spokesman for the Uganda AIDS
Commission. “These two groups (gays and lesbians) are marginal; their numbers
are negligible.”
“The Minister of State for Health,
Jim Muhwezi, recently insisted that Uganda’s ABC [Abstain, Be Faithful,
Condoms] approach adequately catered for all groups in Uganda, including
homosexuals. “The don’t deserve a special message. They shouldn’t exist, and we
hope that they are not there. If they do exist they are covered by the
three-pronged approach of ABC and should be content with that.”
“A Ugandan physician who has worked
closely with sexual minorities for the last three years spoke to PlusNews on
the condition of anonymity, rejected the notion that the national average of
six percent held true among homosexuals. “In Uganda, when someone is discovered
to be HIV positive we do not ask about their sexual behaviour, so we get a
statistic that is assumed to relate to heterosexuals,” he said, commenting that
although there were no statistics, he was certain the prevalence of HIC among
homosexuals was several times the national average. Many gay men in Uganda
remain unaware of the risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections
through unprotected sex. The physician maintained that this ignorance was due
to a deliberate ‘policy of pretence’ regarding the existence of homosexuals,
and to incorporate them into Uganda’s HIV/AIDS framework would be tantamount to
admitting their existence in society. “There are gay men – the fact is they are
a more vulnerable grouping than anyone else, so they need to be targeted, they
need to be educated,” he stressed….
“Few
alternatives for HIV/AIDS Activists: The UNAIDS report called on
governments to eliminate pre-existing prejudices and encouraged a
non-discriminatory approach to secual minorities, but Beatrice Were, an
HIV/AIDS research and policy analyst at ActionAid Uganda, said no such approach
had been adopted in Uganda. “Our hands are tied behind our backs because we are
bound by the law,” she said. Indeed, in 2005, the Ugandan parliament endorsed
an amendment to the constitution outlawing homosexual marriage. She conceded
that prejudice in the NGO community meant they, too, were failing sexual
minorities. “Many of us don’t walk the talk. We have not yet dealt with our own
fears and stigmas and therefore we are biased in our preventions,” she said.
The result was that gays and lesbians
were denied access to HIV education, treatment and counselling. “We now
have to be honest with ourselves and talk about sexual minorities,” she said.
“Otherwise, by the time you accept it (HIV among sexual minorities) the scale
will be too big to deal with.”
(This report does not necessarily reflect the
views of the United Nations)”[27]
34.
“Quoting a
Ford Foundation-funded study in Kampala, Uganda, a member of the panel [of the
International Conference on AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Africa
(ICASA) in Abuja, Nigeria] noted women
who have sex with women (WSW) “were convinced that they could not get STIs or
be infected with HIV…It is essential that WSW do not consider themselves
immune to AIDS.” Specific programmes for MSM [men who have sex with men] and
WSW have to be devised and implemented that take account of their separate
realities, and both communities should have access to proper care and support,
the activists said.”[28]
35.
“”The more
confused young people are, the more they put themselves at risk,” said [Edith]
Mukisa [who heads Kampala’s Naguru Teenage Center]…She sees an increase in homosexual behaviour,
oral sex and anal sex among young people who tell her, in anonymous surveys,
that they’ve turned to such practises in an effort to “stay virgins.”
“It’s too early to determine the
effect of these changes on AIDS prevalence rates. Earlier this year, the Health Ministry reported that a study had
found the national rate of 7%, up from the previous estimate of 6.2%. Officials
attributed the increase to differences in date-collection methods, not changes
in behaviour.
“Many AIDS officials blame the
abstinence push on pressure from U.S. conservative groups, such as the Heritage
Foundation and Focus on the Family, and on the Bush administration program the
President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, PEPFAR. The five-year, $15-billion
program has dramatically increased U.S. funding for AIDS work in Africa, but it
included a hefty earmark from probrams that deal exclusively with abstinence
and faithfulness. Two thirds of its AIDS-prevention budget must be spent on the
A-B [Abstinence – Be Faithful] of A-B-C [Abstinence – Be Faithful – Use
Condoms].” One casualty so far is condom-distributor Population Services
International, which lost its funding recently after being attacked by
[fundamentalist preacher Martin] Ssempa and U.S.-based Focus on the Family.
Last month, the United Nations’ special envoy on fighting AIDS in Africa
attacked the U.S. influence. “The condom
crisis in Uganda is being driven and exacerbated by PEPFAR and by the extreme
policies that the administration in the
United States is now pursuing in the emphasis on abstinence,” said Stephen
Lewis, former Canadian ambassador to the U.N.”[29]
F. Risk of extra-judicial killing:
Mob
violence against Ugandan homosexuals
36.
“Latest: gay
activist murdered in Kampala: Ugandan police is covering up the murder of a
member of Lesgabix, a lesbian and gay grouping in Kampala, in June 2000. The
organisation's Management Committee reports.
“The post-mortem report
showed that Paul died due to internal bleeding in the brain. It is evident that
he was hammered on the head by a heavy
metal bar. The extents of the injuries in his headwall and the brain were
all noticeably severe for him to survive the attack. There was blood oozing
from his nose, ear and the mouth. Apart from the head injuries the rest of the
body was intact. This suggests that the murder was committed by a group of
professional murderers. It was not a gang of robbers. All his personal
belongings were not taken from him, he was having Uganda Shillings 40,000 (about
$ 30) in his pocket, before the murder.
“The Lesgabix's
Management Committee deliberated on the following:
1. That the statement of the murder be read by his Doctor of six years, in
close consultation with the govt. pathologist who performed the post-mortem.
2. Paul was not an unknown personality in the town, apart from being a young
successful business man, he was very active in organisation of the GBL human
rights activities organised by LESGABIX in the town, he had no serious enemies
that can go to the extent of planning and the ultimate brutal murder of this
magnitude.
3. The regional Police's statement that Paul must have been murdered by his
business rival/associates is therefore null and void, since so far no one has
been arrested to date yet their report also indicate murder.
4. This is understatement (murder by a business rival) with the main aim of
confusing the people and his immediate family members and friends.
5. The police's disruption of the funeral planning committee's meeting, with
the main excuse being that there have been a lot of people politicking instead
of actual funeral organising, is a strong indicator that the police are not interested
in arresting the perpetrators of this evil act. They are up to do the cover up
of this murder.
6. That the police have not arrested any suspect, more than one week after the
murder.
7. Weeks ago, Lesgabix held several meetings of which Paul took part actively
and that one aspirant for a political post who happen to have known this warned
Paul to stop this. The politician's niece happen to be our member and for this,
he feels politically embarrassed. He wanted Paul to force the niece to leave
this open campaign. This member refused and there was no way Paul could assist
over this because it’s a human choice. Our member also shares the same
sentiment. We are still demanding full investigations and prosecution.”[30]
37.
“’They may
chase him or her from the school,’ says 29-year old Andrew Milton, one of the
MUSLA pastors. ‘If you’re working-class, you may lose your job. If family
members realize you are doing such a thing, they get you as outcast. The community may stone you.’”10
38.
“I can't imagine that the constitutional amendment can be anything but
dangerous for LGBT Ugandans and contributes to an atmosphere of impunity. Mob violence is a real threat.”[31].
39.
“Witch hunt threatened: Ugandan
weekly publication The Xtreme has
this week revealed the names of people who they claim are homosexuals and has
threatened to reveal more names, claiming that their list includes high profile
business men and religious leaders. The move, which could seriously affect
people’s livelihoods and perhaps even their lives, is being roundly condemned
by activists in the country…’The Xtreme, Volume 1 Issue 2 Thursday, 14
October – 20 October 2004[,] Homos
Racket[:] MPs, Pastors, Universities and Expatriates implicated…Homosexuals
have infested Kampala by a storm just like the underground wealth searching
expedition. A list of homos that was availed to The Xtreme last week implicates several institutions and persons of
high dignity. The details are so incredible that one could take a long time to
internalize the country. Nile Breweries, Makerere University, Kampala
International University, Pastors, politicians, including members of parliament
and students are all among the homosexuals that have invaded the country.
Homosexuality in Uganda is illegal according to the laws governing the country.
For fear of causing a stampede, The
Xtreme will reveal the names regularly but [at] intervals. Homosexuality,
which is sex between people of the same sex, men, demands a man playing sex in
another’s anus. Those named include staff of Nile Breweries. They are:…”[32]
40.
“The state
minister for information, Nsaba Buturo, has said Uganda is under a moral attack
and called on Christians to heighten their moral and social responsibility.
Butoro said several immoral practices such as pornography, homosexuality, witchcraft, defilement and rape were
increasingly becoming acceptable norms in society. “Unless we rise up and
condemn these evils, those behind them
are lobbying for their acceptance as rights,” he said.”[33]B
41.
“Lesbianism
and homosexuality are just habits like smoking, drinking alcohol, drug abuse,
etc – all highly addictive habits…It is reported that new pupils in these
schools are forced into same-sex orgies by way of bullying, only to get
addicted after repeated unabated exploitation…Religious leaders should…take
part by repeatedly condemning, in churches and mosques, the evil of
homosexuality and lesbianism….The Police should visit the holes mentioned in
the press, spy on the perverts, arrest and prosecute them…The fight against
this perversion must be relentless and a continuous process. It is clear that
the First World is heavily rooting for this evil as our women who attended the
42.
“The
questions that remain to be answered are whether homosexuals constitute a
particular social group in
“According to the evidence before me homosexuality
is unacceptable to most Ugandans and those who are known to be homosexuals face
social ostracism and in some cases serious harassment, discrimination and even
violence…
“The Applicant has also provided a number of
newspaper articles which report on anti-homosexual statement[s] of those in
power and incidents of harassment against gays. A website called ‘Gay Uganda’
states that there are many gays in
“From the information set out above, it is clear
that homosexuals are seen as people united and set apart from society by their
sexual[it]y in
“It is also clear from the information set out
above that those known to be homosexuals face at least some harassment and
possibly detention, serious discrimination in areas such as employment and possibly physical harm. As the
applicant’s sexuality is known to the authorities and others in
“Conclusion:
The Tribunal is satisfied that the applicant is a person to whom
“Decision: The Tribunal remits the matter for
reconsideration with the direction that that the applicant is a person to whom
Mob
violence in
43.
“Incidents of
vigilante justice were reported frequently during the year. There were numerous instances in which mobs beat,
stoned, or burned to death individuals suspected of petty theft, witchcraft, or
infidelity. For example, on June 11 [2004], residents of
“There were numerous instances in which mobs attacked suspected thieves and other
persons known or suspected to have committed crimes…Motivated in part by
distrust or misunderstanding of the formal judicial system, these mobs
engaged in stonings, beatings and other forms of mistreatment. Such
mistreatment included tying suspects’
wrists and ankles together behind their backs, stripping suspects of their
clothes, parading them through the streets, and other forms of torture and
inhuman and degrading treatment.”16
G. References
to the persecution of Ugandan homosexuals
44.
“As the applicant’s sexuality is known to
the authorities and others in
45.
“The Ugandan refugee claimants illustrate the
claim made by Vancouver’s Anglican bishop this week that some persecuted
homosexual Christians in other parts of the world see Canada’s West Coast
as a welcoming haven…Bishop Michael Ingham, who this summer provoked an international
controversy by agreeing to bless same-sex relationships, on Wednesday told a
Hong Long gathering of the Anglican church’s top leaders he wants to show the
many persecuted gays and lesbians who come to B[ritish]C[olumbia] that the
Christian church loves and accepts them.”2
46.
“Anti-gay
sentiment is deeply entrenched in Ugandan society. And persecution is sanctioned right from the top.”10
H. Support
of the Ugandan churches and State for violence against homosexuals