I came across this article while checking one of my many email accounts (actually not that many, just one I check seldom) anyway without getting off point, this is about a law in Uganda which is disgusting and just something that makes me happy to live in a country where people are at least a little more tolerant and while there are miles to go in terms of equal rights, it is not as oppressive as certain territories, there is a petition so please take the time to read this and sign it:
Have you heard about the brutal new anti-gay law in Uganda?
A bill in the Ugandan parliament proposes life imprisonment for anyone convicted of having same-sex relations and imposes the death penalty for "serial offenders."1 NGO employees working to prevent the spread of HIV could be imprisoned for up to 7 years for "promoting homosexuality." Even members of the public face up to three years in jail if they fail to report homosexual activity to the police within 24 hours!
The bill had been delayed because of some initial international criticism. But after a well-funded and vicious lobbying effort by extremists, it now looks set to be passed—threatening widespread persecution and bloodshed.
With the decision expected in days, only an irresistible wave of worldwide pressure will be enough to save the lives of gay people in Uganda.
So our friends at Avaaz are organizing a new international petition to stop the gay death law. Will you join in? Clicking here will add your name:
MoveOn.org Political Action: Stop the Gay Death Law in Uganda
The petition says, "We stand with citizens across Uganda who are calling on their government to withdraw the Anti-Homosexual Bill, and to protect the universal human rights embodied in the Ugandan constitution. We urge Uganda's leaders and donors to join us in rejecting persecution and upholding values of justice and tolerance."
The petition will be delivered to President Museveni, members of the review committee and Ugandan embassies worldwide this week—before it's too late—as well as to key donor governments.
Ugandan gay rights advocate Frank Mugisha writes, "This law will put us in serious danger. Please, sign the petition and tell others to stand with us—if there's a huge global response, our government will see that Uganda will be internationally isolated by the proposed law, and strike it down."
The bill's advocates claim that it defends national culture, but its strongest critics come from within Uganda. The Reverend Canon Gideon Byamugisha is one of many who have written to Avaaz. He says:
"It is violating our cultures, traditions and religious values that teach against intolerance, injustice, hatred and violence. We need laws to protect people—not ones that will humiliate, ridicule, persecute and kill them en masse."
By rejecting this dangerous bill and supporting the breadth of opposition to it, we can help set a crucial precedent. Let's build massive support for Uganda's human rights defenders, and save lives by stopping this bill.
Clicking here will add your name to the petition:
The petition says, "We stand with citizens across Uganda who are calling on their government to withdraw the Anti-Homosexual Bill, and to protect the universal human rights embodied in the Ugandan constitution. We urge Uganda's leaders and donors to join us in rejecting persecution and upholding values of justice and tolerance."
The petition will be delivered to President Museveni, members of the review committee and Ugandan embassies worldwide this week—before it's too late—as well as to key donor governments.
Ugandan gay rights advocate Frank Mugisha writes, "This law will put us in serious danger. Please, sign the petition and tell others to stand with us—if there's a huge global response, our government will see that Uganda will be internationally isolated by the proposed law, and strike it down."
The bill's advocates claim that it defends national culture, but its strongest critics come from within Uganda. The Reverend Canon Gideon Byamugisha is one of many who have written to Avaaz. He says:
"It is violating our cultures, traditions and religious values that teach against intolerance, injustice, hatred and violence. We need laws to protect people—not ones that will humiliate, ridicule, persecute and kill them en masse."
By rejecting this dangerous bill and supporting the breadth of opposition to it, we can help set a crucial precedent. Let's build massive support for Uganda's human rights defenders, and save lives by stopping this bill.
Thanks for all you do.
–Justin, Michael, Carrie, Stephen, and the rest of the team
Source:
Human Rights Impact Assessment of Uganda's Anti-homosexuality Bill By Sylvia Tamale The Zeleza Post
Have you heard about the brutal new anti-gay law in Uganda?
A bill in the Ugandan parliament proposes life imprisonment for anyone convicted of having same-sex relations and imposes the death penalty for "serial offenders."1 NGO employees working to prevent the spread of HIV could be imprisoned for up to 7 years for "promoting homosexuality." Even members of the public face up to three years in jail if they fail to report homosexual activity to the police within 24 hours!
The bill had been delayed because of some initial international criticism. But after a well-funded and vicious lobbying effort by extremists, it now looks set to be passed—threatening widespread persecution and bloodshed.
With the decision expected in days, only an irresistible wave of worldwide pressure will be enough to save the lives of gay people in Uganda.
So our friends at Avaaz are organizing a new international petition to stop the gay death law. Will you join in? Clicking here will add your name:
MoveOn.org Political Action: Stop the Gay Death Law in Uganda
The petition says, "We stand with citizens across Uganda who are calling on their government to withdraw the Anti-Homosexual Bill, and to protect the universal human rights embodied in the Ugandan constitution. We urge Uganda's leaders and donors to join us in rejecting persecution and upholding values of justice and tolerance."
The petition will be delivered to President Museveni, members of the review committee and Ugandan embassies worldwide this week—before it's too late—as well as to key donor governments.
Ugandan gay rights advocate Frank Mugisha writes, "This law will put us in serious danger. Please, sign the petition and tell others to stand with us—if there's a huge global response, our government will see that Uganda will be internationally isolated by the proposed law, and strike it down."
The bill's advocates claim that it defends national culture, but its strongest critics come from within Uganda. The Reverend Canon Gideon Byamugisha is one of many who have written to Avaaz. He says:
"It is violating our cultures, traditions and religious values that teach against intolerance, injustice, hatred and violence. We need laws to protect people—not ones that will humiliate, ridicule, persecute and kill them en masse."
By rejecting this dangerous bill and supporting the breadth of opposition to it, we can help set a crucial precedent. Let's build massive support for Uganda's human rights defenders, and save lives by stopping this bill.
Clicking here will add your name to the petition:
The petition says, "We stand with citizens across Uganda who are calling on their government to withdraw the Anti-Homosexual Bill, and to protect the universal human rights embodied in the Ugandan constitution. We urge Uganda's leaders and donors to join us in rejecting persecution and upholding values of justice and tolerance."
The petition will be delivered to President Museveni, members of the review committee and Ugandan embassies worldwide this week—before it's too late—as well as to key donor governments.
Ugandan gay rights advocate Frank Mugisha writes, "This law will put us in serious danger. Please, sign the petition and tell others to stand with us—if there's a huge global response, our government will see that Uganda will be internationally isolated by the proposed law, and strike it down."
The bill's advocates claim that it defends national culture, but its strongest critics come from within Uganda. The Reverend Canon Gideon Byamugisha is one of many who have written to Avaaz. He says:
"It is violating our cultures, traditions and religious values that teach against intolerance, injustice, hatred and violence. We need laws to protect people—not ones that will humiliate, ridicule, persecute and kill them en masse."
By rejecting this dangerous bill and supporting the breadth of opposition to it, we can help set a crucial precedent. Let's build massive support for Uganda's human rights defenders, and save lives by stopping this bill.
Thanks for all you do.
–Justin, Michael, Carrie, Stephen, and the rest of the team
Source:
Human Rights Impact Assessment of Uganda's Anti-homosexuality Bill By Sylvia Tamale The Zeleza Post
0 comments:
Post a Comment