The Ugandan government is currently considering looking to pass this "Anti-Homosexuality Bill" which would have devastating consequences for their countries LGBTI community. For their safety it is vital this bill be dismissed which is the aim of this petition.

The bill proposes Homosexuality as Illegal with the following consequences:

1) Anyone found to be practicing homosexual acts will be punished to life imprisonment

2) Anyone who is practicing "Aggravated homosexuality", meaning they are homosexual AND have AIDS/HIV, would be facing a death sentence (This is apparently being reviewed and may be dropped from the bill)

3) Finally, citizens who do not report known homosexual acts also recieve 3 years imprisonment, and if they publicly support homosexuality through statement or other means, that is another 4 years on top of that, making 7 years in total.

Besides the obvious horrible consequences for the LGBTI community and their supporters, this would also affect media freedom in their country, making less information available to needy people. Also, people's willingness to seek help when they are infected with HIV would be non-existent, which could mean the disease is less discussed and spreads unspoken throughout the country even more than its devastating current presence in the region. 

As stated by the INTERNATIONAL GAY AND LESBIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION:

"The negative repercussions of the bill in Uganda will be immediate and severe. It effectively bans the free association and expression that are necessary for a flourishing civil society, and creates a climate of fear and hostility that undermines the citizenship and solidarity of all Ugandans. It will lend itself to misapplication and abuse, and implicitly encourages persecution of LGBT people by private actors. Effective HIV prevention activities in Uganda, which rely on an ability to talk frankly about sexuality and provide condoms and other safer-sex materials, will be difficult, if not impossible."

We need to act on this, if not for the reasons above, then for basic human rights!