Parliament has this evening passed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2023 into a law of the land and not awaits President Museveni to assent onto it.
In the Anti homosexual Bill 2023, seeks to prohibit any same sexual acts in Uganda by imposing penalties on those found in the act. The minority are also aware that clause 2 (1) (d) of the B declare acts of homosexuality a person who holds out as a lesbian, gay, transgender, queer or any other sexual or gender identity that is contrary to the binary categories male and female.
The bill has provisions that effects on criminalizing the persons who identify as lesbian, gay, transgender, queer or any other sexual or gender identity that is contrary to the binary categories of male & female without such persons having committed an offence under the laws of Uganda.
The Bill was presented to the house by the Bugiri Municipality legislator, Mr Asuman Basalirwa as a private member’s bill.
According to the Committee of parliament they observed that Homosexuality is a unique offense that needs a specific law to deal with its manifestations & the introduction of the Bill builds on a strong foundation already laid by Gov’t and Parliament in dealing with new and emerging matters of public interest.
During the debate in the house, the bill brought in mixed reactions from the parliamentarians and these included Hon Musa Echweru, Hon Jonathan Odur, Hon Father Charles Onen, Hon Sarah Opendi among others.
Hon Sarah Opendi stated that ” “Where somebody has got your child into homosexuality even life imprisonment is not adequate. The amendment I am proposing is that such a person should be castrated madam speaker.”
She added : “Let us castrate all those men found guilty of any Homosexual act, this is the only way we can fight Homosexuality in Uganda”-Sarah Opendi Tororo Woman MP”
Fr Charles Onen (MP Gulu City East); “Madam speaker there is nothing as sweet on earth as a woman for a man. So there is no way a man can be looking for a fellow man.”
“For anybody who can stand here and tell us that it is a human right to destroy people’s anuses, that person is evil hell belongs to that person. Those who believe in it let them have it in their countries,” Mr Echweru
“I have gone to some hospitals, I have seen children with ripped anuses, I have talked to doctors and I have been informed that they have been molested by homosexuals” Mr Echweru added.
