Kampala, May 2, (dpa/GNA) – Uganda’s parliament passed a revised law targeting homosexuals on Tuesday.
The law provides for the death penalty for specific homosexual acts, such as sex with minors or with people belonging to “vulnerable groups.”
People or groups “promoting gay activities” can be sentenced to up to 20 years.
The law, in its second version, still needs to be signed by President Yoweri Museveni within a month in order to enter force.
The revised version of the bill does not criminalize a person’s “perceived sexuality or physical appearance” but their “sexual acts,” lawmaker Robina Rwakoojo said in a parliamentary statement.
Unlike the previous bill, people could no longer be arrested solely on the “suspicion of homosexuality,” lawmaker Michael Lulume told dpa.
However, the new version is still very similar to the previous one, Lulume said.
Museveni did not sign the first version of the law, passed by parliament on March 21 despite an outpouring of criticism from abroad.
The president ordered a revision, saying the attorney general had expressed concerns that the law might not be legally sound.
In recent years, there have been repeated attempts by various social groups to introduce stricter laws against homosexual people in Uganda.
Most because of a presidential veto or were overturned by the Supreme Court.
GNA