Human Rights Watch Reports Ugandan Government’s Increasing Harassment of LGBT NGO’s

BY MELANIE NATHAN, AUGUST 21, 2012.

In a report released today, Human Rights watch (HRW) asserts that research and advocacy organizations in Uganda which deal with controversial topics are facing increasing harassment by Uganda’s government. Groups have recently faced forced closure of meetings, threats, harassment, arrest, and punitive bureaucratic interference.

The 50-page report, “Curtailing Criticism: Intimidation and Obstruction of Civil Society in Uganda,” notes the increasing government attacks on organizations whose focus includes oil revenue transparency, land acquisition compensation, legal and governance reform, and protection of human rights, particularly the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people.

With regard to the report, Human Rights Watch asserts:

“Both government ministers and district-level officials have engaged in obstruction.  The Ugandan government should end its hostile rhetoric and repeated obstructions of nongovernmental organizations.“Uganda’s government is putting serious pressure on civil society, particularly on organizations that might be seen as infringing upon the officials’ political and financial interests,” said Maria Burnett, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Civil society should have space to conduct research and take part in policy debates without fear of government reprisals.”

According to to HRW:

“President Yoweri Museveni, in office since 1986, is widely believed to be gearing up for yet another term. Since his re-election in 2011, political tensions have been running high and public criticism of government has escalated. To better control this environment the ruling party’s high-ranking government officials are increasingly scrutinizing nongovernmental organizations and the impact they might have on public perceptions of governance and management of public funds, Human Rights Watch found.

This report is based on research carried out by Human Rights Watch staff throughout 2011, as well as in-country research from May to July 2012, and a review of Uganda’s nongovernmental regulations and other relevant laws. Human Rights Watch interviewed 41 people, including 25 representatives of organizations working on a broad range of thematic work and from around the country, as well as donors, police, and government actors.

The operations of nongovernmental organizations in Uganda are regulated by the country’s NGO Act, which requires organizations to register with the government’s NGO Board, managed by the minister of internal affairs. Members of Uganda’s intelligence services sit on the board to monitor civil society activity. In this way, organizations are treated as possible national security threats.”

The Ugandan government’s hostility to, and harassment of, Uganda’s LGBT community and its leadership is unabated. Government officials demonizing homosexuality are targeting a vulnerable community and deliberately misinforming the public, stirring hatred, and diverting donor attention, notes HRW. 

“LGBTI organizations are forced to operate on the margins because criminal laws on homosexuality prevent them from legally registering with the NGO Board. In the last few months two workshops focused on advocacy for the rights of LGBT people have been forcibly shut down by police at the behest of the minister of state for ethics and integrity, Simon Lokodo, though there is no basis in law for such actions. In one instance activists were temporarily detained. The minister has stated unequivocally that organizations supporting the rights of LGBT people will be de-registered.”

With the public’s frustrations with the ruling party leadership since the February 2011 elections, many see the government’s relentless focus on the alleged threat of homosexuality as a facile populist strategy to gain support. The LGBT community in Uganda remains deeply vulnerable to public harassment and violence. Organizations told Human Rights Watch that they fear that the hostility toward the LGBT community will be used to slander human rights organizations and undercut their work in all areas.

“It is not illegal in Uganda to discuss homosexuality or advocate for legal reform to decriminalize homosexuality, and government officials should not behave like it is,” Burnett said. “Government officials should remember they have a duty to protect the rights of all citizens, not only citizens they agree with.”

Given the increasingly challenging operating environment, staff and representatives of nongovernmental groups expressed serious concerns about their ability to maintain their research, advocate positions on controversial issues, and protect their employees. Representatives of these groups told Human Rights Watch that they fear they will not be able to carry out their mandates due to the hostile environment, and some acknowledged that they have begun to censor their own work to maintain some level of operations.

The government of Uganda should change its approach to all nongovernmental organizations, especially those working on sensitive or controversial subjects, and improve the operating space for all civil society, Human Rights Watch said. The government should rein in hostile rhetoric, amend laws that treat nongovernmental organizations as possible threats to national security, and publicly support the essential role of civil society. In turn, Uganda’s international partners, especially those considering funding the NGO Board, should actively voice their concerns about the need to end unjustifiable interference in civil society operations.

“The government should publicly support the essential role of civil society in stimulating public debate, rather than attacking this essential element of a human rights-respecting democracy,” Burnett said. “Uganda’s international partners should actively voice their concerns regarding these threats to nongovernmental groups, particularly given the escalation in government hostility toward freedom of expression and association.”

THE REPORT

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