United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres is “deeply concerned” by Uganda’s president’s promulgation of an “anti-homosexuality law” considered one of the most repressive in the world, his spokesman said Today. voice.
“We are very concerned about the implementation of the anti-homosexuality law in Uganda. The Secretary-General is clear and asks member states to respect the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” said Stéphane Dujarric.
“It once again calls on all countries to decriminalize same-sex consensual relationships with transgender people. To be clear, no one should be punished, imprisoned or criminalized by the one they love,” he added.
As for the impact of that law on UN operations, “the teams in the country continue to talk to the government to see what the impact will be,” he noted.
“It is up to the different UN agencies to decide which way to go,” Dujarric said.
Uganda has already criminalized homosexual acts, but the new law – passed by President Yoweri Museveni on Monday – toughens the penalties even further, with a possible death penalty if the relationships involve minors or the transmission of a disease.
Once the law reform is passed, the only way to prevent its application is through the courts.
Human rights groups criticized the new text, as did the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the European Union, while the United States, a major trading partner of the African country, threatened sanctions.
Source: DN
