Rwandan Parliament Begins Debate on Anti-Gay Bill

Inspired by its northern neighbor Uganda, the lower house of the Rwandan Parliament begins debate on revising its penal code that will, for the first time, criminalize homosexuality.

A vote on this draft code will occur before the end of the week. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission has learned that the proposed Article 217 of the draft Penal Code Act will criminalize "[a]ny person who practices, encourages or sensitizes people of the same sex, to sexual relation or any sexual practice." If the Chamber of Deputies approves, the draft code will go before the Rwandan Senate most likely in early 2010.

The draconian legislation would impose prison sentences of between five and ten years for those convicted of "practicing homosexual acts." Health and HIV/AIDS advocates fear that "encouraging and sensitising" could be interpreted to ban on counseling and impact on health services for gay men.

State sponsored anti-gay hysteria has been sweeping across east Africa. In recent weeks Uganda, whose government has been particularly harsh toward its LGBT citizens, has been debating the Anti Homosexuality Bill which would impose a possible death sentence for those convicted of "aggravated homosexuality." Earlier this year, nearby Burundi enacted harsh new anti-gay legislation that criminalized homosexuality and made same-sex relations punishable by up to two years in prison.

Comments

[Jim]

It only makes sense that in a nation that experienced the slaughter of between 500,000 and 1,000,000 people by machete—not, mind you, over religion, culture, or language, but over what amounts to little more clan affiliation—there should be no more pressing issues than the “gay problem.” After all, that little genocide incident was a distant fifteen years ago.

Yes, it is truly inspiring that the nation of Rwanda, among all African nations, has cured itself of all social ills, and now has the luxury to deal with the irksome presence of gay people in its midst.

[mjolnir202]

Jim: My thoughts exactly. You would think of all the countries in Africa, they would be most sensitive to the consequences of hate and intolerance. Nope, genocide is easily forgotten when there is hating the gays to bring the Hutus and Tutsis together.

I won't lie, reading something like this, makes me a whole lot less sympathetic to Rwanda and its cause.

Between the goings on in Africa and my interaction with the Africans here, I make a point to say that I'm BLACK, ***NOT***African-American. The time for making excuses for Africans and blaming Colonialism for all of Africa's problems is over. Africans have shown that they are more than willing to adopt the white man's Bible and homo-hatred and general intolerance for difference when it suits them. That goes for West Indies as well, and I'm from there.

[dt]

Ditto @Jim

@Mjolnir202, say it and say it one more time please. You would think of all the countries in Africa, Rwanda would know better and have more intelligence on issues of discrimination, oppression and hate given their last hoorah in genocide. Either they aren’t very intelligent after all or they are just choosing not to use it. I’d like to believe they are just choosing not to use it.