Activists ‘heartbroken’after police crackdown on Pride Uganda
Despite its organisers having obtained the necessary permission to stage Pride Uganda last weekend, police blocked the event for the second time this year.
In August Ugandan police raided a Pride event, arresting many participants. The heavy-handed nature of the raid — and a threat by Minister of Ethics and Integrity Simon Lokodo to incite mob violence against Pride participants were the event to take place — forced organisers to postpone the event until last weekend.
But organiser Frank Mugisha says, although Uganda’s inspector general’s office had given the go-ahead for the event, Kampala police refused to provide security on Saturday.
“The [inspector general’s] office instructed the Kampala local police to provide us with security and protection on the day, but the local station commander refused to do this, saying that the person who had granted permission did not know that it was a gay pride event,” said Mugisha.
Mugisha and his team approached a station commander in Entebbe, who agreed to provide protection. “But it was a verbal agreement.”
On the morning the festivities were to take place, police raided the first venue, a resort. Activist Almeidah Karemani, who edits the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) website Kuchu Times, said she was “heartbroken” that the police had stopped the parade. “They just showed up and ordered us to leave.”
Although no arrests were made, participants were forced out of venues and escorted back to Kampala.
The police clampdown on Pride Uganda came just days after United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon spoke out against countries that criminalise homosexuality.
During what was the first UN highlevel meeting on LGBTI rights, Ban cited Uganda, Russia and Egypt, saying that they were “bucking the tide of history with draconian new punishments for being gay — or even just talking about being gay”.
He added: “There is no room in our 21st century for discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.”
In Uganda, homosexuality is outlawed and carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for repeat offenders.