In this staunchly anti-homosexual country, Allen Mutebi has gotten used to moving -- five times within the last two years, to be exact.
"They suspect. They talk. Threats are made. I move on," shrugs Mutebi, a gay man who spoke on condition that his real name not be used because he feared for his safety.
"They suspect. They talk. Threats are made. I move on," shrugs Mutebi, a gay man who spoke on condition that his real name not be used because he feared for his safety.
The killing of gay right activist David Kato last month has reinforced anti-homosexual attitudes in Uganda.
But following the killing of prominent gay rights activist David Kato two weeks ago, Mutebi plans to make one final move -- out of Uganda.
"What happened to Kato will happen to more and more people," he predicts.
The motive behind Kato's slaying is still under investigation. Police officials say it did not relate to Kato's sexuality; gay and lesbian activists suspect that it did.
Either way, Kato's death has put the national spotlight squarely on the subject of homosexuality.
Elsewhere, some high-profile murders of sexual minorities -- Matthew Shepard in the U.S., for instance -- became watersheds for greater tolerance. But here, Kato's death has reinforced anti-homosexual attitudes.
The Sunday after Kato's slaying, a prominent pastor, Martin Ssempa, told his congregation of mostly university students that Kato had tricked his "victims" into getting drunk before molesting them and fleeing into the night.
Ssempa has been a leading voice against gays and lesbians here, framing homosexuality as a Western import designed to corrupt African culture, and going so far as to show gay pornography in his church. (California pastor Rick Warren had once found common cause with Ssempa but has since distanced himself.)
But in the wake of Kato's death, it's no longer just the radicals who are thundering against homosexuality.
An Anglican priest at Kato's funeral shocked hundreds in attendance when he said, "The world has gone crazy. ... You cannot start admiring a fellow man."
The motive behind Kato's slaying is still under investigation. Police officials say it did not relate to Kato's sexuality; gay and lesbian activists suspect that it did.
Either way, Kato's death has put the national spotlight squarely on the subject of homosexuality.
Elsewhere, some high-profile murders of sexual minorities -- Matthew Shepard in the U.S., for instance -- became watersheds for greater tolerance. But here, Kato's death has reinforced anti-homosexual attitudes.
The Sunday after Kato's slaying, a prominent pastor, Martin Ssempa, told his congregation of mostly university students that Kato had tricked his "victims" into getting drunk before molesting them and fleeing into the night.
Ssempa has been a leading voice against gays and lesbians here, framing homosexuality as a Western import designed to corrupt African culture, and going so far as to show gay pornography in his church. (California pastor Rick Warren had once found common cause with Ssempa but has since distanced himself.)
But in the wake of Kato's death, it's no longer just the radicals who are thundering against homosexuality.
An Anglican priest at Kato's funeral shocked hundreds in attendance when he said, "The world has gone crazy. ... You cannot start admiring a fellow man."
Mutebi says former friends have threatened to have him killed following Kato's slaying.
And Kato's former colleague at the rights group Freedom and Roam Uganda, Kasha Jacqueline, says she has switched off her phone amid an uptick in death threats. "We've never been safe but the threats are growing," she said.
Outlets that could typically be counted on to protect the rights of minorities have been profoundly absent amid the rising homophobia, she said.
The Uganda Human Rights Commission issued a quarter-page letter urging the police to quickly investigate the matter but beyond that has found no compelling reason to change its approach according to the changing circumstances.
"We don't want to single out a group," commission chief Med S.K. Kaggwa said. "When you start identifying with one group, you stop doing your job."
The media, too, have done little to curb the spread of homophobia. The leading anti-establishment daily, the Monitor, relegated news of Kato's slaying to a sliver at the bottom of Page 1. Uganda's top tabloid, the Red Pepper, referred to Kato as a "sodomy champ," and on Thursday supplemented news of him with that of a lesbian "recruiter," without explaining what was meant by recruiting.
And Kato's former colleague at the rights group Freedom and Roam Uganda, Kasha Jacqueline, says she has switched off her phone amid an uptick in death threats. "We've never been safe but the threats are growing," she said.
Outlets that could typically be counted on to protect the rights of minorities have been profoundly absent amid the rising homophobia, she said.
The Uganda Human Rights Commission issued a quarter-page letter urging the police to quickly investigate the matter but beyond that has found no compelling reason to change its approach according to the changing circumstances.
"We don't want to single out a group," commission chief Med S.K. Kaggwa said. "When you start identifying with one group, you stop doing your job."
The media, too, have done little to curb the spread of homophobia. The leading anti-establishment daily, the Monitor, relegated news of Kato's slaying to a sliver at the bottom of Page 1. Uganda's top tabloid, the Red Pepper, referred to Kato as a "sodomy champ," and on Thursday supplemented news of him with that of a lesbian "recruiter," without explaining what was meant by recruiting.
Parliamentarian David Bahati is sponsoring an anti-homosexual bill that, if passed in its
present form -- and he is confident it will -- would make it a crime for a landlord to offer housing to a homosexual and for a parent not to report a homosexual child to the authorities. He says he is encouraged by the national unity on display.
present form -- and he is confident it will -- would make it a crime for a landlord to offer housing to a homosexual and for a parent not to report a homosexual child to the authorities. He says he is encouraged by the national unity on display.
"Kato's murder is bringing the national debate back to where it belongs," he said. "Kato worked hard to destroy the lives of our children and families." Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda and in more than 30 other African countries.
The crisis here as some see it is not anti-homosexual sentiment per se -- firmly rooted as it is in tradition and religion -- but in an unwillingness among spiritual and political leaders to urge their followers to draw a distinction between opposing homosexuality and pursuing violence in the name of that opposition.
Last year, a weekly tabloid, Rolling Stone (no affiliation with the American music magazine), published the names and photos of suspected homosexuals next to a banner that read "hang them," which led to those listed, including Kato, being singled out and threatened.
Still, few if any prominent leaders spoke out against the publication, though a Ugandan court did rule that Rolling Stone's actions threatened the safety of gays and lesbians and ordered the magazine to pay $650 in damages.
The office of President Yoweri Museveni, perhaps worried about losing votes in the upcoming election, has been largely silent amid these developments. It issued no statements regarding Kato's death, even as international leaders -- from President Barack Obama to Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams -- did.
One spiritual institution in Uganda that has called for equal rights for gays and lesbians is the Unitarian Universalist Church. The church's leader, the Rev. Mark Kiyimba, is holding a conference next week to promote greater understanding of the gay community. He opposes street demonstrations and other confrontational forms of activism, which he says will just politicize the issue and incite backlash against homosexuals, favoring what he calls "community engagement" to encourage tolerance.
Pastor Moses Solomon Male, who heads the National Coalition Against Homosexuality and Sexual Abuse in Uganda, says he is concerned that the anti-homosexual cause is failing to make an important distinction.
Male (pronounced mal-eh) says he favors a strong emphasis on treatment to convert homosexuals to a heterosexual lifestyle and has proposed extensive changes to the anti-homosexuality law to reflect that. He says that he would also urge Ugandans "to be calm and not beat them," but that he does not have enough resources to convey that message.
"Wanting to make a contribution [toward ending homosexuality in Uganda] is one
thing; how to do it is another," he told AOL News.
"Wanting to make a contribution [toward ending homosexuality in Uganda] is one
thing; how to do it is another," he told AOL News.
http://www.aolnews.com/2011/02/12/slaying-of-gay-activist-david-kato-spotlights-homophobias-rise/
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