Uganda’s Constitutional Court has rejected a petition seeking to annul an anti-gay law that has been roundly condemned internationally as one of the toughest in the world.
The court found on Wednesday that some sections of the law violated the right to health, and it was “inconsistent with right to health, privacy and freedom of religion” but did not block or suspend the law.
“We decline to nullify the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 in its entirety, neither will we grant a permanent injunction against its enforcement,” Justice Richard Buteera, Uganda’s deputy chief justice and head of the court, said in the landmark ruling.
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According to Ugandan television station NTV, the five-member court reached a unanimous decision to reject the petition against the law, which enjoys broad popular support in the country.
In a statement posted on X, the Uganda-based Human Rights Awareness and Promotion Forum warned that the decision “unfortunately will fuel human rights violations” against the gay community in the country.
Steven Kabuye, a 25-year-old activist and executive director of the advocacy group Colored Voice Truth to LGBTQ, also warned against the dangers of the court decision. In January, he was stabbed by unknown assailants after receiving death threats for his advocacy.
“The court’s decision opens a ‘Pandora’s box’ that will push the lives of gay Ugandans furthermore into darkness,” he wrote on X.
Al Jazeera