LGBT holidays in Uganda

Many of Uganda’s tribes have a long cultural history of homosexuality, bisexuality, cross dressing and a general blurring of sexual orientations. One example is King Mwanga II, who ruled the Baganda people in the 1880s and was openly bisexual. The original laws forbidding homosexual activity were not introduced by Ugandan rulers, but by the British, under colonial rule in the 19th century.

It is ironic, therefore, that many of the Ugandans who are opposed to homosexuality today claim that this is because it is anti-Ugandan, anti-African. Despite Uganda’s sexually liberal history, homosexuality is seen as a Western custom – being “introduced” into the continent as a form of cultural colonialisation. Some people have even suggested that it is being deliberately “promoted” by Westerners as a way to stop Africans from procreating.

These attitudes are strengthened by religious beliefs, as Uganda is deeply Christian. LGBT rights organisations also point a finger at evangelical groups and their opposition to “gay agendas”, such as the US missionaries who arrived in the country in 2009. In speeches held in front of thousands of participants, they claimed that homosexuality was evil, and explained how to make gay people straight.

In many countries with harsh, anti-LGBT stances, we would emphasise that it is important not to confuse the citizens with the government. People often disagree with the laws of their country. However, in Uganda, for the reasons cited above, it is the case that much of the population shares the government’s views, which certainly makes it much harder to visit as an LGBT traveller. A survey carried out by the Pew Research Center in 2013 revealed that just four percent of Ugandans believed that society should accept homosexuality.

There are a handful of brave NGOs here fighting for LGBT rights, and a few low-key events, including Pride Uganda. However, these events are seen as “promoting” homosexuality, being held to “recruit” gay people and convert children. “Pride” is sadly something of a misnomer; due to the clear danger of joining such parades, participants cover their faces, numbers are very low, and public spaces are avoided – but even so, they are still seen as a “threat” by authorities. Previous Pride events have been subject to police raids, and August 2017’s Pride Uganda was cancelled after the organisers were threatened with arrest.