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Lawmaker: Uganda ‘Kill The Gays’ Bill Will Become Law Soon As ‘Christmas Gift’

Uganda’s Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, says the internationally-controversial “Kill The Gays” bill will become law soon — possibly in the next two weeks — as a “Christmas gift” to Ugandans. Kadaga, who last month promised to bring the bill to the House floor, claims most Ugandans “are demanding it.”

“Referring to the law as a `Christmas gift’ to the population, she spoke of `the serious threat’ posed by homosexuals,” Gay Star News reports:

The law will broaden the criminalization of same-sex relationships by dividing homosexuality into two categories; aggravated homosexuality and the offense of homosexuality.

`Aggravated homosexuality’ is defined as gay acts committed by parents or authority figures, HIV-positive people, pedophiles and repeat offenders. If convicted, they will face the death penalty.

The `offense of homosexuality’ includes same-sex sexual acts or being in a gay relationship, and will be prosecuted by life imprisonment.

Originally put to government in 2009, the Anti-Homosexuality Bill had been temporarily shelved because of international criticism.

Jim Burroway at Box Turtle Bulletin notes, “Warren Throckmorton writes, `the basic news that the Parliament is set to act on the bill is consistent with what I am hearing from sources in Uganda’.”

Burroway and Throckmorton are two of the top reporters on Uganda.

Burroway adds:

It also confirms a report made earlier this month by Daily Monitor, a much more reputable independent newspaper, which quoted the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee Chair Steven Tashobya as saying that his committee will be ready to report the bill back to the House floor before Parliament breaks for Christmas.

Warren Throckmortin found this report, which suggests that Uganda’s Parliament may pass proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill sometime in the next two weeks. According to the report:

Speaker (Rebecca) Kadaga committed herself during a meeting with a coalition of religious, political, cultural leaders held at parliament where she said that Uganda is an independent country which operates under its constitution. We should stop dancing on the tune of western countries. We have the right to reject any things which is against our culture.

“Am going to allow Hon Bahati to proceed with his bill and make sure that it is passed within the period of two weeks. As leaders we should listen to the voice of our people. It is our responsibility to protect our country against homosexuality ,our value, culture and character” Speaker Kadaga noted

Elsewhere religious, cultural and political leader said that all homosexual practitioners in Uganda should be killed because homosexual is not allowed in Uganda.

“It is an abomination in Uganda for a man to marry a fellow man and a woman to get married to her fellow woman. We strongly condemn and oppose the devil called homosexuality on our soil. As religious, cultural leaders we urge the Uganda’s brave (Kadaga) to be strong, farm and courageous while fighting Homosexual in Uganda. The Western world should take their moral behaviors away from Africa Uganda in particular” Religious leaders noted.

The international community has condemned Uganda’s repeated attempts to pass the “Kill The Gays” bill, and the U.S. has vowed to remove foreign aid funding to Uganda, a threat that has worked up until now.

“I will not accept to be intimidated or to be directed by any government in the world because we are independent. We are Ugandans. We are not a colony of Canada; we’re not even a protectorate,” Kadaga said in October, according to Think Progress.