Uganda passes a bill criminalizing identifying as LGBTQ

In a move that human rights groups and activists have widely condemned, Uganda’s parliament passed a law on Tuesday that criminalizes identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ).

The bill threatens individuals with 10 years in jail. The law also bans promoting and abetting homosexuality as well as conspiracy to engage in homosexuality. Violators of the law face severe penalties, including death for so-called aggravated homosexuality and life imprisonment for gay sex.

Uganda parliament has passed a new bill making it illegal to identify as LGBT. pic.twitter.com/pM3Y98pmEB

— Lebo (@lebohangbokako) March 22, 2023

The law is seen as an attempt to erase the existence of LGBTQ people in Uganda, who already face legal discrimination and mob violence. More than 30 African countries, including Uganda, already outlaw same-sex relations. The new law appears to be the first to outlaw merely identifying as LGBTQ.

The bill was introduced by opposition lawmaker Asuman Basalirwa, who claimed that it was necessary to protect Uganda’s culture, religion, and traditional family values from sexual promiscuity. However, critics of the bill argue that it violates Uganda’s constitution and international human rights standards by infringing on the rights to privacy, equality, non-discrimination, and freedom of expression, and the association of LGBTQ people.

The bill is expected to be signed into law by President Yoweri Museveni, who has a history of opposing LGBTQ rights and has recently called homosexuals “deviants”. Museveni signed an anti-LGBTQ law in 2013 that a court later annulled on procedural grounds.

The law’s passage has sparked outrage and fear among LGBTQ Ugandans and their allies. Frank Mugisha, a prominent LGBTQ activist in Uganda, said: “This law is very extreme and draconian … it criminalizes being an LGBTQ person but also they are trying to erase the entire existence of any LGBTQ Ugandan”. Oryem Nyeko, Uganda researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: “One of the most extreme features of this new bill is that it criminalizes people simply for being who they are” and urged Ugandan politicians to “stop targeting LGBT people for political capital”.

The international community has also expressed concern over the situation in Uganda. The US State Department said it was “deeply troubled” by reports of the bill’s passage while Amnesty International called on Museveni not to sign it into law. The European Union said it would review its relations with Uganda if the bill becomes law.