Julius Malema, the leader of the South African opposition party Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has today led protesters to the Ugandan high commission in Pretoria, condemning the East African nation’s controversial bill which criminalises identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ).
Uganda already has a ban on same-sex relationships, but lawmakers felt that the current legislation was falling short and introduced even more stringent laws in a bid to further stifle the movement.
The bill, if signed into law by President Yoweri Museveni, imposes the death penalty for persons who commit “aggravated homosexuality”.
With a rainbow flag, Malema said it is a shame that Ugandan MPs would pass such a discriminative bill, which at the end could be used against them.
“Uganda must know that the people they are about to kill are not alone, they have friends in us – even if you kill them, we will continue to carry their cause forward and expose the hypocricy of President Museveni and the government of Uganda,” said Malema.
“Shame on you all the MPs who passed that bill in Uganda. You must know that yourselves are going to be killed. One day, with this law, Museveni can wake up and says Bobi Wine is gay, not because he is, but because he is disagreeing with him politically and according to law, he must be killed. He is going to use this law to kill his political opponents. He must be stopped and he must be stopped now”.
“There is nothing we are doing that is anti African. African means allowing everybody in Africa to be who they are without passing judging. We are not less Africans by supporting our own children, brothers and sisters. We are standing here and we are proud Africans. Don’t make Africanism look like barbarism, it is not the same. To be an African does not mean to be a barbarian,” he added.
EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Thambo said the bill which has sailed through Uganda’s Parliament is “inhumane”.
“The EFF reiterates its utter condemnation of the inhumane Anti-Homosexuality Bill passed by the parliament of Uganda on March 21, 2023. Fundamentally, the parliament of Uganda has legalised bigotry,” said Thambo.
The firebrand Malema has also urged the government of Uganda to reverse this decision.
“You cannot promote hate and then fold our arms and don’t show the Ugandan government that we don’t agree with hate. We are victims of hate. We were discriminated against on the basis of our identity and as a result, so many people were killed and this law that is passed in Uganda is going to be an act of hate,” he said.
More international bodies have denounced the Ugandan bill including the White House which, in a statement read by the House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “The bill is one of the most extreme anti-LGBTQI+ laws in the world. Human rights are universal. No one should be attacked, imprisoned, or killed simply because of who they are or whom they love. “