Amnesty International says the Uganda Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) must urgently drop charges of “aggravated homosexuality” against a 20-year-old man charged on 18 August 2023 becoming the second Ugandan to be charged with the offence under the country’s “invasive” Anti-Homosexuality Act, which carries the death penalty, Amnesty International said today.
Describing the Anti-Homosexuality Act as discriminatory, Amnesty International said charging the 20-year old with a death penalty is a disregard for international law.
In a statement on Wednesday, Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, said “It is deeply disturbing that the Ugandan authorities are prosecuting people based on their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. Discrimination and persecution of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people in the country must be halted.”
Amnesty International explained that the lawyers of the accused told them that Ugandan police officers arrested the 20-year-old alongside another individual, aged 41, at Soroti Sports Ground in Soroti, eastern Uganda, on 15 August 2023.
They were arrested around midnight and taken to Soroti Central Police Station on allegations of engaging in sexual relations with a person of the same sex, an allegation that the accused person denied.
The lawyers reported that the police officers told them that they caught the two men half-naked.
“Charging this individual with an offence that carries the death penalty based solely on his perceived sexual orientation is a flagrant violation of international law. Uganda must not only repeal the Anti-Homosexuality Act but also ensure accountability for the ongoing violations against the LGBTI community in the country,” Chagutah said.
On the same day of the arrest, the police released the 41-year-old man. The police told lawyers that the 41-year-old was unable to provide consent for sexual conduct due to his “mental status” and therefore a victim, making the alleged offence “aggravated”.
However, according to a spokesperson from the Office of the DPP, the “victim was a 41-year-old male living with a disability.” Lawyers said that the police did not provide any evidence to substantiate this assertion.
The 20-year-old was held in police custody until 18 August. He was then taken to Soroti Chief Magistrates Court, before being remanded at the Soroti Main Prison until 1 September, when his case will be called for mention at the same court.
The lawyers of the accused also told Amnesty International that the police conducted anal examinations on the alleged victim on 16 August.
“Amnesty International vehemently opposes any form of anal examination to determine whether anyone has engaged in same-sex sexual relations. Such examinations violate the prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment under international law.”
