Government fails on Uganda at CHOGM
The Australian Government failed to confront Uganda at last month’s Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Trinidad and Tobago over the Anti-Homosexuality Bill currently before Uganda’s parliament.
The EU, Britain, France, the United States and Canada have all condemned the bill, as have many international human rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
The bill punishes the slightest expression of same-sex intimacy with life imprisonment, while HIV positive GLBTs will be eligible for the death penalty. Condom use is not a mitigating factor.
The bill also outlaws any advocacy on behalf of GLBT people, while any Ugandan entering into a same-sex marriage will be jailed for life, and friends and relatives of homosexual people will be jailed for up to three years for failing to denounce a loved one.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper voiced their opposition directly to Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni during the summit.
But the Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed that Foreign Minister Stephen Smith did not meet with his Ugandan counterpart, nor did Prime Minister Kevin Rudd raise the issue with Museveni during CHOGM.
However, a departmental spokesperson said the issue was now on the Government’s radar.
“The Government is deeply concerned about the draft Anti-Homosexuality private member’s bill before the Ugandan parliament”, the spokesperson wrote in a statement.
“The Australian High Commission in Nairobi has been instructed to raise the Australian Government’s concerns about the contents of the bill with the Ugandan Government.
“The Government believes that people are entitled to respect, dignity and the opportunity to participate in society and receive the protection of the law regardless of their sexuality.”
Uganda’s Minister for Ethics, Nsaba Buturo, recently told a gathering in Kampala that his Government would not be swayed by international pressure.
“Our values are more important than their aid,” Buturo said.
Rwanda, a country which has proposed similar draconian laws, was welcomed into the Commonwealth of Nations at this year’s meeting with the support of Australia and other leading countries in the group. It is only the second non-former British colony to be admitted to the Commonwealth.
Australia will host the next CHOGM in 2011 in Perth after beating Sri Lanka in its bid to host the forum.
Oh yeh meant to sat to Martin,I think africans were trying to break from their colonial past.Obviously not.
Cut off aid to Uganda and cut off any ties with Uganda if this bill passes.Disgraceful…But then again look at Idi Amin and I guess what else can one expect…
Wow.
Life imprisonment eh?
That legislation wouldn’t happen to be a political response to Bruno would it? I mean, I’ve got friends who appraise Bruno for exposing homophobia at its core, but really, Sacha Baron Cohen was just being really terrible and offensive.
That is the dirtiest law I’ve ever heard of!
Kevin Rudd is just a disgrace to humanity. He has shamed the Labor Party and openly lied to us all over and over.
I would like to remind readers that, while they may not yet constitute a majority, there are many decent people in Uganda who do not agree with this law, and debate is continuing in the country with quite a number of opinion pieces and columns against the Anti-Homosexuality Bill having been published in non-government media in Uganda, both online and in print.
In fact in 2007 Uganda’s Daily Monitor newspaper published two articles by yours truly on the science of homosexuality which were later included in a book published in the country.
A number of Ugandan human rights organisations as well as clergy and academics are campaigning against the bill, while Ugandans who have lived outside the country in places where gays and lesbians live openly have written letters to newspapers trying to dispel some of the myths about homosexuality in the country.
We should not make the mistake of reacting to homophobia with racism.
Better late than never, I’m glad Rudd is now confronting the Ugandan’s over this hate-legislation. But we have keep the pressure and prominence on this issue, otherwise it will slip and be regarded as just another African nation conducting atrocities against another minority…
Maazi N.C. Okezue-Umeh is another closet queen getting off on trolling on gay websites and writing incomprehensible posts. Whatever gets your rocks off I suppose…
A VIEW FROM AN AFRICAN ON THE “WRONG SIDE” OF THE BELL CURVE:
So in other words, what John is saying is that up until 1967 when homosexuality was decriminalized in Great Britain, the local English/Scots/Welsh people had low IQ of less than 70. And that the IQ among the White British populace started from that year 1967 to grow and finally reached the climax/peak of the Bell Curve when same sex marriage was allowed in 2005.
Under the logic of Mr.John, Australians are on the wrong side of the bell curve, since same-sex marriage is yet to be approved by the Canberra government. Like the poor retarded Africans (myself included), your ex-Prime Minister, John Howard, has low IQ of about 67 which will suddenly shoot to 300,000 on the intelligence scale as soon as he starts campaigning for gay marriage.
Having reviewed your logic, Mr John, who is more intelligent: Is it you (the White Australian) or me (the black African)?
Uganda will always be backward. It’ll never be able to compete with the 1st world, wallowing in pestilence and corruption with its stupid politicians looking to blame gay people for all its problems. I mean, the place hasn’t even advanced to the stone age. Areas where the population tends to have an average IQ on the wrong side of the bell curve, tend to be the most homophobic. And, for the bleeding hearts out there, it’s not just the politicians who are homophobic but the populace as well. So, they’ll never get any money from me. Cut off aid, don’t let them into Australia (except the gay ones) and let the rest rot away. Sorry, had enough of bleeding hearts and political correctness.
As for our government not raising this issue. Well what can we say – typical. Support with one hand and ignore with the other. Kevin shame on you…
Martin, You can have your views and we can have ours. Frankly your hate is just a manifestation of your ignorance. Just remember this, that some of the money that goes to the Ugandan people comes from gays and lesbians. How about we stop supporting your country the next time there is a drought or war and we let you just die. Cause frankly I am more than happy to spend the money on people who deserve it.
Martin you should not get an erection on gay websites. You are gay that is why you go to homosexual websites and pretend Martin is from Uganda. You tell us that you are not gay but yet you love to come here and see news. You should accept the part of you that likes to be homosexual. Everytime you abuse us you are trying to say to yourself you are not gay but you are.
The sad fact for you is Jesus accepted homsexuality was in the Bible http://www.whywouldwe.net/site , and Africa had a long proud history of homsexuality. Martin for you to pretend you are from Uganda makes me think you have some sort of mental problem. If you do not accept homosexuals and yourself then you will be going to Hell. You soul will burn in the fires of Hell for eternity.
Sodomists have found a people that are sober and not ready to succumb to their madness!Do you know why in Uganda we celebrate june the 3rd?Ugandans find Homosexuality repugnant and an insult to human intelligence because not even mosquitoes base as they are have ever considered the act.We as a people cherish family and its have values must be protected.Homosexuality is anti family and the epitome of selfishness,perversion and madness.Uganda will always be the pearl of Africa.FOR GOD AND MY COUNTRY!