US Supreme Court Ruling Cited as Uganda Upholds Anti-Gay Death Penalty
Supreme Court decision that struck down Roe v. Wade was cited in Uganda's decision to uphold an anti-gay law calling for the execution of those who practice "aggravated homosexuality."The Constitutional Court of Uganda on Wednesday used the Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v.
Jackson Women's Health Organization as justification to largely uphold Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023, arguing that the U.S. court's conservative majority had established a new standard for "human rights jurisprudence" that places "history and traditions" over individual rights.Dobbs, which in 2022 instantly criminalized abortion in many U.S.
states, was cited as a "basis for the court decision" to uphold the gay death penalty law, which the Ugandan court said had been passed last year following "public outcry" over the supposed "forced recruitment of children into homosexual acts."Uganda's constitutional court praised the U.S.
Supreme Court's decision to strike down Roe v. Wade, writing that the court had "considered the nation's history and traditions, as well as the dictates of democracy and rule of law, to over-rule the broader right to individual autonomy."The Ugandan court also cited an "absence of consensus at the global level regarding non-discrimination based sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics" as justification for the anti-gay law.The law defines "aggravated homosexuality" as gay people who: engage in gay sex involving a minor; have HIV or disabilities; are elderly; or get convicted of non-aggravated homosexuality more than once.Homosexuality not considered to be "aggravated" under the law is punishable by to a life sentence in prison, while "promoting" homosexuality carries a sentence of up to 20 years.
