UGANDA: FIVE ARRESTED FOR ‘PROMOTING’ HOMOSEXUALITY

The Ugandan media is reporting the arrests of five “suspected homosexuals” for apparently “promoting homosexuality” and “recruiting” children.

The arrests may be among the first under the country’s new Anti-Homosexuality Act, which was signed into law earlier this year. Other recent arrests have been under previously existing laws outlawing gay sex.

According to the Daily Monitor, the arrests took place in the Pader District in Northern Uganda after locals told police that the suspects had been “carrying out clandestine movements in both primary and secondary schools in the district luring the pupils and students into the practice.”

The suspects include two businessmen, a teacher, and two students “who are allegedly recruiting and promoting the act.” Local police have confirmed the arrests.

A spokesperson for the OC Pader Central Police Station said that, “The suspects’ medical report is out and their files have been forwarded to the Resident State Attorney for advice, pending prosecution.”

The promotion of homosexuality is punishable with between five and seven years imprisonment. Additionally, the suspects could be jailed for life if they are found guilty of having gay sex.

On Monday, the Ugandan government issued a bizarre statement claiming the Anti-Homosexuality Act is not aimed at targeting private acts but “curbing open promotion of homosexuality, especially among children and other vulnerable groups.”