Uganda’s parliament passed a strict anti-LGBTI law on Tuesday, in which it is even forbidden to identify yourself under one of these names. This is reported by international news agencies. Penalties for so-called “attempts at homosexuality” can be up to 10 years in prison.
Nearly all 389 lawmakers voted in favor. At the start of the vote, the chairman said it was important to know who would vote against the bill. Only President Yoweri Museveni can now veto the law, but he suggested in a recent speech that he supports the law.
The East African country already had a life sentence for sex with someone of the same sex. Human rights organization Human Rights Watch calls the new law “an even more shameful version” of an anti-LGBT law that was already passed in 2014 – and against which the human rights organization already objected at the time. Strong criticism was also heard from other quarters. The law was later annulled. Human Rights Watch criticizes the new law for criminalizing people based on who they are, rather than their behavior.