Uganda has a past that has been filled with oppression and violence at the hands of both government officials and a variety of rebel groups.
Ugandans have been singled out and killed, mostly over their ethnic backgrounds, geographic locations and political allegiances, from the Acholi in the north, to the Karamojong in the northeast, to the majority Buganda, to the people of the Luwero Triangle.
For example, after overthrowing President Milton Obote in 1971, Idi Amin ordered the killing of several northern officers in the Ugandan military. Then, in 1980, after Milton Obote’s return to office, the inhabitants of Luwero Triangle were punished for rejecting Obote’s rule, resulting in the deaths of at least 100,000 civilians. Thousands more were detained, tortured, assaulted, and displaced.
In the northeast, the Karamojong came under attack as Ugandan soldiers mounted a pacification campaign, which resulted in the eradication or displacement of most of southern Karamoja's population by mid-1984. Together the Obote and Amin regimes saw over 300,000 people singled out and killed for various reasons.
Rebels have also terrorized Ugandans, dating back to the 1980s and the emergence of groups such as the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA, northern Uganda), the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF, western Uganda), and the West Nile Bank Front (WNBF, northwestern Uganda). The forces mainly terrorized local populations, isolating specific groups and holding them hostage to random attacks, kidnappings and killings.
Today, Uganda is once again faced with a challenge to human rights and security.
The Anti-Homosexuality Bill being considered in Parliament could plunge Uganda back into violence. It could mean a return to an era where segments of the population are arbitrarily singled out for arrest, torture and death, violating the human rights of an untold number of Ugandans.
Already editions of the Ugandan tabloid, the Rolling Stone, have published, on their front pages, the photos and personal information of more than 100 people the paper claims are “homosexuals”. One headline read: “100 Pictures of Uganda’s Top Homos Leak” with the caption: “Hang Them”.
The Anti-Homosexuality Bill promises state-sponsored terrorism against of Ugandan citizens. The most problematic of its provisions include:
A death sentence for “aggravated homosexuality”.
Life in prison for homosexual offences.
Criminalization of the “promotion” of homosexuality and failing to report knowledge of known homosexuality within 24 hours.
The bill would also seriously impair the work of human rights defenders and public health professionals.
The bill encourages “witch hunts” in which individuals could be singled out and turned in for violating the law, based on paranoia and personal vendettas on the part of accusers, or the violation of social norms by victims. It could lead to more violence against, and even the unlawful killing of, individuals who are perceived to have transgressed social norms.
Already several Ugandans have been singled out for who they are and subjected to harassment and violence. For example in May 2008 two clubgoers were detained, beaten and accused of being homosexuals. The assaults were carried out first by club staff and later in police detention.
In January 2011 LGBT activist David Kato was brutally beaten and killed in his home. Kato became well-known when he successfully sued the Rolling Stone.
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Recently on February 14, the government raided an LGBT-rights workshop being held in Entebbe and attempted to arrest Kasha Jacqueline Nabagasera, a prominent LGBT rights activist and winner of the 2011 Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.
An international outcry from human rights defenders and foreign governments has helped stall the bill but has not resulted in its recall.
A clear message needs to be sent to ensure the scrapping of the bill. Uganda has worked hard to shed its violent past and is working towards becoming a leader in East Africa. A return to state-sanctioned violence would strip the country of many of the advances the country has made in recent decades.
Msia Kibona Clark is Uganda country specialist for Amnesty International USA.
