http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/sun_news/British_PM_against_anti-gay_legislation_95302.shtml
British PM against anti-gay legislation
Emmanuel Gyezaho & Agencies
Kampala
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has joined the crusade against the
Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2009 and is understood to have spoken to President
Museveni on Friday, voicing his opposition against the proposed
legislation.
Mr Brown met President Museveni at the Commonwealth Heads of Government
conference in Trinidad and Tobago and reportedly made it clear to him that
he is opposed to the new law that would impose life imprisonment to
homosexuals in Uganda.
The Private Members Bill drawn up by Ndorwa West MP David Bahati also
proposes the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality”- defined in the
proposed law as any sexual act between gays or lesbians in which one
person has the HIV/Aids virus.
Major international news outlets reported yesterday that the matter caused
a furore at the Commonwealth meet, with Uganda facing isolation.
“The country’s plans have caused a backlash from other Commonwealth
nations and condemnation from gay rights groups who want Uganda thrown out
of the Commonwealth unless they back down,” reported the UK’s Telegraph
newspaper.
Awkward moment
“The clash was set to lead to an awkward moment, as Mr Brown was thought
to be seated next to President Museveni at an official banquet last night
[Friday],” reported the UK’s Daily Express yesterday.
Quoting a source at Mr Brown’s office, The Telegraph reported: “A Downing
Street source said, ‘The Prime Minister did raise it and you can take it
that he was not supportive of the idea.’”
Even before Mr Museveni made the trip to Trinidad, activists were urging
the Commonwealth to suspend Uganda’s membership if the new law is passed.
The gay rights row appears to have overshadowed the Commonwealth meeting
where Mr Museveni is outgoing chairman. Uganda hosted the Chogm in 2007
and Mr Museveni has since been its chairman.
Although it is not clear how Mr Museveni reacted to Mr Brown’s
reservations on the Bill, the NRM leader has publicly expressed his dread
against homosexuality.
Mr Museveni recently told a gathering of youth in Kampala to turn away
from homosexuality.
“I hear European homosexuals are recruiting in Africa. We used to have
very few homosexuals traditionally,” he said, adding: “You should
discourage your colleagues [who are gay] because God was not foolish to do
the way he arranged.”
Mr Bahati told Sunday Monitor yesterday that he was certain President
Museveni would be “unfazed” by the amount of international pressure piling
against the Bill.
“We believe that homosexuality is not a common value for the
commonwealth,” he said in a telephone interview. “There is no amount of
pressure or intimidation that can deter us from defending our traditional
family set up.”
However, the row will have left Commonwealth leaders divided, especially
because they hold deeply polarised views on homosexuality. Some
Commonwealth countries, including Britain and Canada, have liberal views
on the subject, but many African and Caribbean nations that are members of
the Commonwealth, a grouping which brings together former British
colonies, are socially conservative and maintain laws on their books that
criminalise homosexuality.
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