President Museveni

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has said that he plans to remove a provision that would impose the death penalty for some homosexual acts including rape and penetration where the defendant is HIV positive. However, the rest of the bill which would criminalise homosexual acts, remains unaltered.

James Nsaba Buturo, Uganda’s minister of state for ethics and integrity, said:
“The death penalty is likely to be removed. The President doesn’t believe in killing gays. I also don’t believe in it. I think gays can be counseled and they stop the bad habit.”

The proposed amendment would do nothing to alter Penal Code Article 145a, which punishes "carnal knowledge of any person against the order of nature" – a charge used to prosecute,LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) people with the threat of life imprisonment.

The Bill would still expand the legal definition of homosexuality by criminalizing a wider range of behaviors, from sexual stimulation to simply "touching another person with the intention of committing the act of homosexuality." The new amendments appear to preserve heightened sentencing for 'aggravated homosexuality,' including homosexuality by 'serial offenders,' those who are HIV positive, or those whose partner lives with a disability.

The proposed amendments are solely concerned with sentencing, and do not address any of the major concerns raised by civil society about draconian restrictions on equality, privacy, and freedoms of expression, association, and assembly.