President Yoweri Museveni has at last assented to the Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2023.
The latest Act of Parliament is a toned down version of the earlier bill introduced by Hon Asuman Basalirwa, which among others, criminalized identifying as a member of the LGBT community.
Museveni vetoed this version and returned to the house for reconsideration. Among the revised clauses of the bill was to criminalize only being caught in the sexual act with a person of the same sex.
The House also removed the burden on owners of brothels and other facilities used by homosexuals, and also got rid of the responsibility to report offenders to authorities.
Speaker of the House Anita Among announced Monday morning that the President had finally signed the bill into law, thanking him and parliament for the the work done,
“As Parliament of Uganda, we have heeded the concerns of our people and legislated to protect the sanctity of family; as per Article 31 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda,” she said.
“I thank His Excellency, the President, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni for his steadfast action in the interest of Ugandans. With a lot of humility, I thank my colleague Members of Parliament for withstanding all the pressure, in the interest of our Country. By their action, we have lived by our motto: For God and our Country.”
Hon Among also thanked the people of Uganda “for the prayers and encouragement as we executed our-mandate in line with Articles I and 79 of the Constitution. We shall always stand for and promote the interests of the people of Uganda.”