Uganda’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday largely upheld a sweeping anti-gay law that President Yoweri Museveni signed last year, undermining the efforts of activists and rights groups to abolish legislation that drew worldwide condemnation and strained the East African nation’s relationship with the West.
The legislation, which was signed into law by Mr. Museveni in May, calls for life imprisonment for anyone who engages in gay sex.
But the law was popular in Uganda, a landlocked nation of over 48 million people, where religious and political leaders frequently inveigh against homosexuality.
The fallout for Uganda will be watched closely in other African countries where anti-gay sentiment is on the rise and anti-gay legislation is under consideration, including Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania and South Sudan.
In February, Ghana’s Parliament passed an anti-gay law, but the country’s president said that he would not sign it until the Supreme Court ruled on its constitutionality.
Persons:
Yoweri Museveni, Museveni
Organizations:
East, West, World Bank
Locations:
Uganda’s, Uganda, United States, Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania, South Sudan, Ghana’s