Uganda arrests four people over 'acts of homosexuality'
the government said on its official website."It calls on the Ugandan authorities to renounce this law and expresses its support for all LGBT+ people in Uganda."Among the world's harshest, the law contains provisions making "aggravated homosexuality" a potentially capital offence and penalties for consensual same-sex relations of up to life in prison.However the legislation has broad support in the conservative, predominantly Christian East African country, where lawmakers have defended it as a necessary bulwark against perceived Western immorality.Museveni accused the World Bank of using money to try to "coerce" his government to drop the legislation.Frank Mugisha, executive director of Sexual Minorities Uganda, a leading gay rights organisation whose operations were suspended by the authorities last year, said the passage of the bill posed a grave risk to LGBTQI+ people."There's a contradiction because the legislation says you can be gay but you shouldn't say anything about it," he told AFP.Furthermore, the near-unanimous approval of the bill by lawmakers "shows you how extreme and homophobic the MPs are and puts LGBTQI+ people in even more danger."(with AFP)Daily newsletterReceive essential international news every morningKeep up to date with international news by downloading the RFI app.
