Uganda’s president has signed a controversial anti-gay bill that allows harsh penalties for “homosexual offences”, calling them “mercenaries” and “prostitutes”.
Yoweri Museveni on Monday signed the bill, which holds that homosexuals be jailed for long terms, outlaws the promotion of homosexuality and requires people to denounce gays.
He denounced gays and spoke in lurid detail about sexual activity while signing one of the world’s toughest anti-gay laws, which has come under fierce criticism from the US president, Barack Obama, who has warned that ties between Kampala and Washington would be damaged.
“Homosexuals are actually mercenaries. They are heterosexual people but because of money they say they are homosexuals. These are prostitutes because of money,” Musaveni said.
He added “there is something really wrong with you” if you were gay, adding that he didn’t understand how a man could “fail to be attracted to all these beautiful women and be attracted to a man”.
The US Secretary of State, John Kerry, said his country was reviewing its relationship with Uganda now that the bill has been enacted.