Uganda moots death penalty for homosexuals

The government of Uganda is planning to re-introduce the controversial anti-gay law, nullified by the constitutional court in 2014 which proposes death penalty for homosexuals.

Plans to re-introduce the anti-gay law was revealed by Uganda’s ethics and integrity minister, Simon Lokodo who told news agency Reuters that when the new bill becomes law offenders would be sentenced to death:

“Our current penal law is limited. It only criminalises the act. We want it made clear that anyone who is even involved in promotion and recruitment has to be criminalised. Those that do grave acts will be given the death sentence.”

He added that “homosexuality is not natural to Ugandans” and there had been a “massive recruitment by gay people” in schools and that they were promoting “falsehood that people are born like that”.

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Mr Lokodo said the new bill, which will be introduced in parliament in the coming weeks, has the backing of President Yoweri Museveni and MPs.

He told local NTV station that he was confident that he would get the necessary two-thirds support from his colleagues in parliament:

“We have been talking to the MPs and we have mobilised them in big numbers…many are supportive.”

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