The United Nations has voiced out its objections toward Uganda’s newly-signed Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023, which imposes capital punishment on “aggravated homosexuality.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pointed out that the law signed by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on May 29 “conflicts with key international treaties and violates the rights of Ugandan citizens.” The UN’s Human Rights Office (HRO) previously called for an “urgent” judicial review of the law. It also described the newly-signed act as a “recipe for systemic violations of the rights” of Ugandans.
Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN secretary general, said on May 30 that Guterres was “very concerned” about the new law. He reiterated that the top UN official “again calls on all countries to decriminalize consensual same-sex relationships and transgender people everywhere. To put it clearly, no one should be penalized, jailed, criminalized for whom they love.”
“The secretary-general has been very clear and continues to call on all member states to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in particular the adherence to the fundamental rights and principles of non-discrimination and respect for personal privacy,” said Dujarric.
The Joint United Nations Program on HIV and AIDS, the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria have also released a joint statement condemning the new law.
The three organizations expressed deep concern over the “harmful impact” of the newly-signed law on public health and the HIV response, adding that “stigma and discrimination associated with the passage of the Act have already led to reduced access to prevention as well as treatment services” for Ugandan LGBT.