WASHINGTON, Feb 26 (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John
Kerry on Wednesday likened new anti-gay legislation in Uganda
that imposes harsh penalties for homosexuality to anti-Semitic
laws in Nazi Germany or apartheid South Africa.
“You could change the focus of this legislation to black or
Jewish and you could be in 1930s Germany or you could be in
1950s-1960s apartheid South Africa,” Kerry told a group of
reporters. “It was wrong there egregiously in both places and it
is wrong here,” he added.
Kerry said the legislation signed by President Yoweri
Museveni on Monday was “atrocious” and expressed concern at
mounting discrimination against gays in 78 countries around the
world.
Homosexuality is a taboo in almost all Africa countries and
illegal in 37, including in Uganda where it has been
criminalized since British colonial rule.
The new law, however, threatens to exact harsher treatment
for offenders and makes it a crime to fail to report anyone who
breaks the law, human rights activists say.
“What is happening in Uganda is atrocious and it presents
all of us with an enormous challenge because LGBT rights are
human rights and the signing of this anti-homosexuality law is
flat out morally wrong,” Kerry said.
“This anti-gay movement is obviously bubbling up in various
places around the world; it is not just an African problem, it’s
a global problem, and we are wrestling with it and we are going
to as we go forward.”
The State Department’s annual global human rights report
will highlight the issue when it is released on Thursday and
Kerry said a gathering of U.S. ambassadors in Washington would
discuss ways to deal with rising prejudice against homosexuals.
Since the enactment of the anti-gay legislation, Washington
has said it is reviewing its relationship with Uganda’s
government. The country is a Western ally in the fight against
al Qaeda-linked militants in Somalia and efforts to hunt down
Joseph Kony, the head of the Lord’s Resistance Army wanted for
war crimes.
The United States, which has warned that the decision
complicates its relationship with Uganda, has expressed concern
that the crackdown will affect the fight against AIDS, which
together with security is the cornerstone of U.S. aid programs
in Uganda.
Western donors have focused AIDS spending in Uganda where a
wave of health programs and a public awareness campaign led to a
sharp reduction in the AIDS rate.
The United States spends more than $485 million on bilateral
assistance to Uganda, with the bulk of the funding focused on
health programs and security, including military training.
(Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Eric Walsh)
