On
December 20, 2013, the parliament of Uganda passed the anti-homosexuality bill that had been on the floor of parliament since 2009. The bill will become law if
the president of Uganda, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, assents his signature to it. This private
member bill, among other things, provides
for a sentence of life imprisonment for anyone convicted of homosexuality,
which covers gays and lesbians. This article explores the politics of the bill other than its morality, il/legitimacy, ethics and legality.
Since
the bill was passed, there has been extensive debate about its moral, ethical and legal standing. On the one hand, human rights activists across the world have
condemned the bill saying that if it is passed into law, its implementation and enforcement will amount to blatant abuse of human rights. On the other hand, proponents of the bill and
a wide section of Ugandans have applauded the passing of the bill, and reiterated its necessity
and importance in upholding and fostering cultural and religious
values.
Resistance against homosexuality in Uganda and other parts of Africa is part of European religious colonial legacy and a result of deeply entrenched
cultural and traditional beliefs and practices. In a bid to spread Victorian morality in Africa, European
missionaries through religious movements, teachings and crusades preached
against homosexuality and sodomy. This formed the foundation on which the
currents faiths were built. Uganda's population is highly catholic (33%), Anglican (33%) and Muslim (16%), and most followers of these religious faiths still view homosexuality
as a practice that is against their religious values, norms, procedures and
biblical teachings. As a matter of fact, ever since the bill was passed, the archbishops of both the catholic and Anglican churches in Uganda have come out to
condemn acts of homosexuality, and have called for redemption and of homosexual
individuals in society.
This lack of acceptance of the gay community is compounded by very
conservative cultural beliefs that are rooted in the philosophy of continuity
of life. Uganda’s tribal communities
are founded on clan system, genealogical lineage, and ancestral history. The three
form the tenets on which social and cultural identity is built and sustained. The
sense of being is not only derived from individual existence but also through
procreation, having a wife or wives and a husband or husbands, and getting subjected to cultural rituals such as rites of passage. Patrilineage, which is common in most African societies has roots in procreation and vice versa. An African clan or tribe cannot imagine that their son or daughter can live ad grow up with having biological children. Reproduction ensures this continuity of life and orientation into earthly and
ancestral life and worlds. Any practice that threatens this belief is
vehemently resisted, fought, and discredited.
Whose anti-homosexuality bill?
Debate about anti-homosexuality bill has focused on the ethics, morality, legitimacy, and legality
of the bill. Yet, the bill seems to be serving political interests than the
purpose for which it is purportedly drafted (to preserve the cultural and
religious values of the people). Because the bill appeals to the cultural and
religious sentiments of majority of Ugandans, politicians and legislators are using it to mobilize political support among Ugandans as we move towards
the 2016 general elections. Ever since the bill was passed by parliament, a largest percentage of Ugandans have come out to show
their full contentment with the bill on social and electronic media. The approval rate for legislators has drastically increased.
The government
of Uganda is also using the bill to divert attention away from continued abuse
of human rights, collapse in rule of law, and violent political harassment of
members of opposition that Uganda has witnessed in the recent past. The
international media and Western government seem to be obsessed with the bill
each time it is debated in parliament and have not given other pressing human
right abuses the attention that they deserve. this serves the current Kampala regime well. With this bill in their hands,
the government of Uganda has added another weapon to their arsenal (in addition
to having military troops in Somalia) to keep Western government, media, and
organisations in check.
Is
homosexuality a western imposed practice?
There
is a popular belief among sections of Uganda's population that homosexuality is a foreign practice imposed on local communities to serve the ulterior motives the West (Europe and north America). This is contrary to the
reports that homosexuality existed in pre-colonial African society. In fact,
while appearing on BBC and CNN in 2012, the president of Uganda, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni,
acknowledged that homosexuality has always existed in Africa, but people never
had debates about it in public (he calls this exhibitionism). The more
Western governments and human rights organisations directly intervene to ensure
that the rights of sexual minorities are observed, the more the belief that
homosexuality is a Western imposition gets entrenched within the local
community. LGBT activists whose local campaigns are funded by western
organizations also vindicate this suspicion. The west has also turned blind eye on other forms of human rights abuse in Uganda. Hesitancy by Western government and human rights organization to come out and strongly condemn other forms of human rights abuse is seen as betrayal, playing double standards and being insensitive to the plight of other many Ugandans who suffer grave injustices, abuses and violence. As one of the Ugandans commented in one of
the debates about the bill: “The proponents of gay rights are as
wrong as the proponents of anti gay law, when political opponents are killed
and persecuted, those bazungus [people from the West] are silent. Are gay
rights more important than other human right?”
Uganda's armed forces breaking up a meeting of unarmed protestors. Such abuses are rarely condemned by Western governments and human rights organisations. |
Western
governments and organizations making mistakes
Ever
since the bill was tabled before parliament, western governments and
organizations have been calling for cuts in foreign aid to Uganda with aim to mount pressure on the Ugandan government and parliament to shelve the bill. By tying human rights to aid money and handouts, the West is
making three mistakes and disservices to the gay community in Uganda and beyond: 1) the West is creating an impression that human rights can be
bought or negotiated using financial and logistical resources and handouts. Human rights are
human rights. Using money and other resources to gain them is setting a wrong
precedent that if these rights can be commoditized and negotiated using money they can be taken
away; 2) they are putting the gay community at risk in cases where countries
may decide to do away with aid, mobilize local resources and continue to
enforce and implement laws against sexual minorities; 3) the West is confirming the
longstanding suspicion that homosexuality is a Western idea that is being imposed on local communities using threats to cut aid, and financial and
logistical facilitation of gay right movements and campaigns.
The
proponents of the anti-homosexuality bill are making the Ugandan society more
homophobic. Those who are challenging the bill (both locally and
internationally) are radicalizing local homophobia. Advocacy, publicity and activism for and against homosexuality will only leave the gay community in a more precarious position. Local politicians will continue to front this bill to cover up for their legislative and political failures as we move towards 2016 general elections. The anti-homosexuality has a lot to do with local politics than the moral, ethical and legal status of the people of Uganda.
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