The news comes after the controversial bill is the subject of
parliamentary hearings, which might see it fast-tracked into
law.
Voting which will determine the future of the law is expecting
to take place this week.
First introduced as a private member's one by MP David Bahati in
October 2009, the Bill promised to impose the death penalty for
those who are HIV-positive, "repeat offenders," or those whose
partner is deemed "disabled" regardless of whether the relationship
was consensual.
Shortly after, it was ostensibly "shelved" by Uganda's president
Yoweri Musveni following an international outcry.
However, it seems that public hearings on the Bill have recently
taken place in the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee and
the remaining stages of the legislative process could be completed
soon.
If enacted, the Bill would greatly broaden the criminalisation of
homosexuality by introducing the death penalty for people who have
previous convictions, are HIV-positive, or engage in same sex acts
with people under 18 years of age.
The bill also includes provisions for Ugandans who engage in
same-sex sexual relations outside of Uganda, asserting that they
may be extradited for punishment back to Uganda, and includes
penalties for individuals, companies, media organisations, or
non-governmental organisations that support LGBT rights.
The PTT's secretary George Broadhead said: "We are shocked that
after such a long time this heinous piece of legislation may still
become law. Much of the homophobic bigotry which is rife in Uganda
and other African countries emanates from religious sources,
including US Evangelical Christians.
"It certainly emanates from the Anglican Church of Uganda which
states on its website: 'The Church of Uganda appreciates the spirit
of the Bill's objective of protecting the family, especially in
light of a growing propaganda to influence younger people to accept
homosexuality as a legitimate way of expressing human sexuality. We
particularly appreciate the objectives of the Bill which seek to
provide for marriage in Uganda as contracted only between a man and
woman; prohibit and penalize homosexual behaviour and related
practices in Uganda as they constitute a threat to the traditional
family; prohibit ratification of any international treaties,
conventions, protocols, agreements and declarations which are
contrary or inconsistent with the provisions of the Act; prohibit
the licensing of organizations which promote homosexuality'.
"Unfortunately the vast majority of the population are Christian
and clearly greatly influenced by these malign Bible-based
policies."
