Parliament welcomes anti-gay law ruling

Parliament has welcomed yesterday’s Constitutional Court ruling to uphold the Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2023.

Speaking during an afternoon plenary session, Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa said they were happy with the result of the judicial ruling.

“We are happy with the outcome of the process,” Mr Tayebwa said, adding, “We want to thank the Attorney General, the legal team from Parliament, honourable colleagues, Ugandans in general, and the Judiciary for not interfering with the work of Parliament and allowing us to execute our mandate as given to us by the people of Uganda.”

Mr Tayebwa did not allow any debate on the matter following his communication reasoning that the judicial ruling was already enough.

“Honourable colleagues, we have done our part and believe this is not an issue on which members should be standing up for and coming up (to begin a debate). We have done our part, the courts have done their part. Okay? We can leave it at that and not add anything…. For us, we are celebrating on our part but the Attorney General needs to internalise and see whether the nullified sections can be reinstated or whether he is satisfied as our lead lawyer for the country.”

Sections 3 (2) C, 9, 11 (2) d, and 14 of the Act were nullified for being inconsistent with the Constitution as the same violates the right of Homosexuals to health, privacy, and freedom to religion.

According to Section 3 (2) C which touches on aggravated homosexuality, “the person against whom the offence is committed contracts a terminal illness as a result of the sexual act.”

Meanwhile, Section 9 states that, “a person who, knowingly allows any premises to be used by any person for purposes of homosexuality or to commit an offence under this Act, commits an offence and is liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a period not exceeding seven years.

Section 11 (2) d centers on the promotion of homosexuality and states, “Knowingly leases or subleases, uses or allows another person to use any house, building or establishment for the purpose of undertaking activities that encourage homosexuality or any other offence under this Act.”

Section 14 (1 to 5) focuses on the duty to report acts of homosexuality.

Bugiri Municipality lawmaker Asuman Basalirwa, the champion of the Bill, tabled it on the floor of Parliament in March 2023 to propose penalties for same-sex relationships. Speaker Anita Among subsequently referred it for scrutiny to the House’s Legal Affairs Committee which started hearing views from respective stakeholders about the Bill.

Previously, Parliament had passed the Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2014 on December 20, 2013, but was nullified by the Constitutional Court citing a lack of necessary quorum of lawmakers to vote on the Bill.

Basalirwa felt that Parliament now had another opportunity to follow all procedures and have a law in place.

Led by Speaker Anita Among, the lawmakers overwhelmingly passed the new draft of the Anti-Gay Bill in May 2023 before President Museveni signed it into law.

A section of human rights activists has continued to condemn the law citing controversial provisions that cite extreme punishments for offenders or those engaged in same-sex relations. Penalties range from death for aggravated homosexuality to imprisonment not exceeding 20 years.

The activists ran to Court to challenge the Act which was ruled upon yesterday.

Reactions to the constitutional court ruling

What is to say you have access to health when your very existence is being challenged? I think it is a failed attempt at balancing up because it is about the rights of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ).

If you say you cannot express yourself if you say you cannot rent a house in this country, if you say you cannot practice your profession.

What is there to say you have a right to health? I think it’s an attempt by the court to throw some positive news on what is a very bad judgment,” Mr Nicholas Opiyo, petitioners’ lawyer.

If it was an exam out of 100 percent, we have scored 95. Which grade is that? Isn’t that A++. The battle we have fought with Pastor Stephen Langa, myself, and other members, we are fighting for the country.

The judges have said the law is consistent with our culture. The homosexuals were arguing about human rights and what not but the court has disregarded all that and, therefore, you should all be aware that Luzira is accommodating enough for all of you.

The other thing they removed is faulting a landlord for renting to homosexuals. However, homosexuality is still illegal in the country and the law has not been nullified

So all of you who have been promoting homosexuality on TikTok, in films, and those who get money through homosexuality should know that you are breaking the law. As for us pastors, we are telling you to repent before the police get you,” Pastor Martin Ssempa, a supporter of the anti-gay law.

Today we are very happy that the court system has in principle agreed with us that the law on homosexuality should remain and so we are so glad that in principle the law remains it is a crime to engage in homosexuality it is wrong and you will be punished for it. So we are grateful to the court for doing that.

There are only some little areas where they say regarding health and privacy where certain sections have been removed but we are still going to look at the details of what has been decided and work with our teams to do the needful

Our goal is to see that Uganda is protected from the problem and vice of homosexuality. Our goal is to see that our children are protected from this vice from those who are recruiting them and engaging them in this very destructive and terrible crime.

So we are very happy that the law has entrenched that protection and also to ensure that our families are thriving because family is a foundational institution in society, there is no way that homosexuality and families can live side by side. It is impossible.

Either family thrives and homosexuality falls or homosexuality rises and families fall. So since we are a pro-family nation, a pro-life nation we cannot welcome something like this which is destructive to individuals, society, and life. So we are really happy with the court system,” Mr Stephen Langa of Family Life Network and supporter of the law.

First of all I want to say that we came to this court with very high expecting that the judges will stand above cultural prejudice and bigotry and make history. Unfortunately, the court has failed to stand beyond and above our cultural prejudices and bigotry and has gone with public sentiment.

But what we have witnessed in court is what I would call a temporary reversal in an overall strategic battle or war against cultural bigotry and prejudice. So we are going to appeal to the Supreme Court, not to strike down different components of this law but to overturn this law in its entirety. We will go to the Supreme Court because I have faith that it cannot say that in a debate on sexuality, only one view is constitutional. The view of saying homosexuals are evil and should be hanged is that anyone who says that they are human beings whose rights should be respected is committing a crime.

The second thing I was so shocked that the Constitutional Court judges said this law was made to protect children. In the 2002 police report, there were 13,000 cases of child abuse reported in Uganda.

Only 300 were of men molesting boys, and 12,700 were of men molesting little girls so if our Parliament is serious about protecting children we need to protect 98 percent of the girls who are being violated by heterosexual men even though we must think also of the two percent who are violated by homosexual men,” Mr Andrew Mwenda, petitioner

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