The comments made by president Yoweri Museveni followed the two-day inter-parliamentary conference focussing on “sovereignty, culture and family values”, which took place in Entebbe, Uganda, between 31 March and 1 April.
The event saw MPs and delegates from 22 African nations, as well as religious and lobby groups, converge to discuss the ‘issue’ of homosexuality in the continent.
British MPs were also suggested to be in attendance, however this is currently unconfirmed.
The conference comes just weeks after Uganda’s parliament passed its Anti-Homosexuality Bill, a draconian piece of legislation that seeks to criminalise people for simply identifying as LGBTQ+, with the death penalty a possibility for those found guilty of “aggravated homosexuality”.
Museveni’s comments strongly suggest that he will sign the bill into law.
At the conference, the Ugandan president said of same-sex attracted people: “Africa should provide the lead to save the world from this degeneration and decadence which is really very dangerous for humanity.
“If people of opposite sex stop appreciating one another then how will the human race be propagated?”
Museveni also praised Uganda’s politicians for passing its Anti-Homosexuality Bill – which both sides of the parliament supported – by saying “promotion and publicisation of homosexuality” will “never be tolerated” in the East African country.
One attendee, Kenyan MP Kaluma Peter, praised Museveni, saying the Ugandan parliament is inspiring other nations to introduce equally strict anti-LGBTQ+ bills.
Peter said: “A person proposing that there should be same-sex marriages or same-sex relationships is a person seeking to wipe out the entire humanity out of the face of this earth.”
African nations told to ‘reject American influence’
As reported by The Guardian, a Ugandan LGBTQ+ activist attended the conference on Zoom via a pseudonym.
The activist, who has remained anonymous to protect themselves, said: “They are drawing up an African strategy to fight homosexuality. They want their government heads to commit to what they called ‘the African position’.”
They added that African nations are being encouraged to “reject American influence”.
“They are calling on African countries to now seriously fight corruption, be self-reliant and break free from the western support.”
Ugandan human rights lawyer and campaigner Nicolas Opiyo also told The Guardian that the “wave” of anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments in Uganda and wider Africa are “nothing to do with Ugandan or African values”.
“It is a disguised campaign by American evangelicals through their local actors,” Opiyo said. ”Their campaigns have now been organised under what appears to be local professional entities such as Christian lawyers’ groups, parliamentary forums and so forth.
“Their claim about African family values is only a ‘dog whistle’, a hate campaign and an imposition of a narrow Christian worldview upon us all.
“Once again, the Ugandan gay community is a target of this misinformation, hate and culture wars.”
Source : PN
