International Bar Association Condemns Uganda's Anti-LGBTQI+ Bill

Strategic Insights -

The International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) has strongly condemned Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which includes the death penalty for 'aggravated homosexuality'. The Ugandan Parliament passed the Bill overwhelmingly, with 389 votes to two, on 21 March 2023. The Bill criminalizes identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, or any other sexual or gender identity beyond male and female, and same-sex sexual acts. The IBAHRI has called on President Yoweri Museveni not to sign the Bill into law, citing its violation of Uganda's international law obligations and the rights of the LGBTQI+ community.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Anti-Homosexuality Bill includes the death penalty for 'aggravated homosexuality', which is defined as committing the offense while living with HIV, being a parent or guardian of the victim, or being a serial offender.
  • The Bill was passed by the Ugandan Parliament on 21 March 2023, with 389 votes to two.
  • The International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) has condemned the Bill, citing its violation of Uganda's international law obligations and the rights of the LGBTQI+ community.
  • The IBAHRI has called on President Yoweri Museveni not to sign the Bill into law, and has encouraged Members of Parliament Fox Odoi-Oywelowo and Paul Kwizera Bucyana for voting against the Bill.
  • The UN Human Rights Committee has stated that the death penalty cannot be imposed for 'crimes' that violate the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), including homosexuality.
  • The Bill will have a chilling effect on free speech and freedom of assembly and association, protected under Articles 19 and 22 of the ICCPR and Principles 19 and 20 of the Yogyakarta Principles.
  • The 2023 Bill is based on the Anti-Homosexuality Act (2014), which was nullified by the Constitutional Court of Uganda because the Ugandan parliament passed it without the necessary quorum.
  • The IBAHRI has highlighted the potential for increased violence against LGBTQI+ persons in Uganda, particularly in the context of the country's existing social prejudice and human rights abuses.
  • The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights has strongly urged states to enact and apply appropriate laws prohibiting and punishing violence targeting persons on the basis of their actual or imputed sexual orientation or gender identity.

Statistics:

  • 389: the number of votes in favor of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in the Ugandan Parliament on 21 March 2023.
  • 2: the number of votes against the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in the Ugandan Parliament on 21 March 2023.
  • 21 March 2023: the date on which the Ugandan Parliament passed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill.
  • 21: the age of the victim in the case of 'aggravated homosexuality', as defined in the Bill.
  • 2018: the year in which the UN Human Rights Committee stated that the death penalty can only be imposed for 'the most serious crimes'.

Sources:

  • The International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI)
  • UN Human Rights Committee
  • UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
  • UN Independent Expert on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
  • African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights
  • Yogyakarta Principles on the application of international human rights law in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)