Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press
Published on Wednesday, March 20, 2024 at 6:45 amEDT
Canada is missing a crucial moment to fight the rollback of LGBTQ+ rights abroad, activists say, and they are urging the Liberal government to take more action behind its condemnation of homophobic legislation in Uganda and Ghana.
Steven Kabuye, an activist who visited Toronto and was stabbed in broad daylight in Uganda in January, says the situation is dire.
“They have legalized homophobia,” he said of his country in an interview.
“They gave a public mandate to kill homosexuals, because where can I get justice? Even the police want to arrest me.”
Last spring, Uganda enacted a law that prescribes life imprisonment for homosexuality and the death penalty for the crime of “aggravated homosexuality,” which includes having homosexual sex while HIV-positive.
The bill calls for prison terms of up to 20 years for those who promote LGBTQ+ rights and requires landlords to evict anyone they suspect of committing homosexual acts.
Ghana’s parliament passed its own bill last month that, if ratified, would allow a decade-long prison sentence for anyone promoting LGBTQ+ rights, and jail time for any same-sex “public display of romantic relationships.” .
The bill would require friends of people who identify as LGBTQ+ to report them to authorities.
A coalition of Canadian groups advocating for LGBTQ+ rights globally says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is failing to respond adequately.
“We’re frustrated because they haven’t recognized that this is an emergency,” said Doug Kerr, director of Dignity Network.
“Now is the time to step up and support groups, and Canada has the capacity to do so.”
A year ago, Trudeau condemned Uganda’s “despicable” legislation and said he was “looking at how we can support” LGBTQ+ Ugandans.
Ottawa has since stepped up its support for LGBTQ+ refugees by giving Rainbow Railroad a larger role in selecting some of the people resettled in Canada.
However, Washington has done more, banning visas for certain politicians in Uganda, suspending the government’s access to preferential trade terms from the United States, and diverting HIV funds from the Ugandan government to grassroots groups.
Last month, the United States also criticized Ghana’s bill, saying it would undermine the country’s economy, public health and human rights reputation.
Kabuye said these bills are creating a culture of impunity for those who wish to harm LGBTQ+ people, including a dozen Ugandan religious leaders who have recently been recorded calling for violence against them.
“Homophobia existed, but it was not legalized before the bill. We had people who wanted us dead, but they had no power,” Kabuye said.
Ugandan police say Kabuye was stabbed on January 3 by two attackers on motorcycles who were aiming for his neck. A video Kabuye filmed after the attack shows him on the ground writhing in pain with a deep wound on his right arm and a knife stuck in his belly.
His roommate held the knife piercing Kabuye’s stomach as the two rode a motorcycle to the hospital.
Kabuye runs an advocacy group and police have allegedly not taken his case seriously due to his activism. In any case, the agents tried to chase him and his roommate, he said.
He said police tried to search their apartment for evidence that they had committed homosexuality.
The police then charged his roommate with obstruction for blocking the entrance to the apartment and with attempted murder, since his fingerprints were on the knife.
He alleged that his roommate was put in a cell with several inmates who beat him after police told them he was gay. He was released after diplomats expressed concerns about the case, Kabuye said.
Kabuye also said the police questioned him the moment he woke up from surgery. “If he had not had colleagues, lawyers and fellow human rights defenders at that time, he would have died in a police cell,” he said.
The Uganda Police Force did not respond when asked to comment on the claims, nor did the country’s high commission in Ottawa.
Kabuye arrived in Toronto earlier this month. He said he came to Canada after feeling increasingly unsafe in both Uganda and Kenya, where he had sought temporary refuge.
He constantly receives threatening messages, he said. And after every media interview, he said the police tell his roommate to “tell Steve that the more noise he makes, the more he’s putting your life in danger.”
Kabuye has a Canadian visa for a conference this fall and will stay in Toronto with the help of local activists until it is safe to return.
He said he wants Canada to leverage its influence to impose visa bans and sanctions on politicians who spread hate, along with their children studying in the West.
LGBTQ+ groups are calling for similar interventions in Ghana.
They want other democracies to condemn the legislation and for foreign companies to stop doing business in the country.
Guidelines disseminated by groups on the ground implore foreigners to “identify cases where Ghana has been identified as a beacon of hope for democracy in Africa, and how, with the passage of the bill, we lose this high reputation.” .
Grassroots organizations tend to warn against foreign governments lecturing their own, lest they spark accusations that they are trying to impose Western values and erase local culture.
But it’s time to act, activists say, because the debate over the bill in Ghana has already sparked violence.
The Ghana Queer Liberation Coalition, based in Toronto and led by Canadians with roots in Ghana, says Canada should be more vocal and consider sanctions to deter bigoted policies.
The group fears the bill will cause more LGBTQ+ Africans to seek asylum in Canada, at a time when the country is already struggling to house refugees.
Ayo Tsalithaba, a member of the coalition, suspects that Ottawa does not want to talk for fear of compromising mining access for Canadian companies operating in Ghana.
“It has been disappointing for us not to have received anything from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs so far,” Tsalithaba said. “It lays the foundation for other African countries to follow suit.”
Asked to respond to the criticism, Ghana’s high commission in Ottawa said in a statement this week that the bill is still awaiting Supreme Court review, and the president has said he will “suspend his decision.” “waiting for that verdict.
Global Affairs Canada said it has made multiple diplomatic representations with Uganda in Ottawa and its capital Kampala, including a meeting last week with members of the Ugandan president’s office.
“We are currently evaluating our response options,” said spokesperson Grantly Franklin. “We are committed to working with experienced partners to support communities in situations of vulnerability and persecution.”
As for Ghana, the department “notes with regret” the drafted bill and says in vague terms that Ottawa will support LGBTQ+ people.
“Given that the bill has not yet been passed into law, it would be premature to comment further,” Franklin wrote.
Kerr argued that only “a small fraction” of Canada’s foreign aid goes to human rights defenders, and that most aid programs are aimed at humanitarian crises or services such as schools and hospitals.
“The Trudeau government has to put its money where its mouth is,” he said, including by helping to ramp up international pressure and studying temporary asylum programs for activists.
“This is where we can have an impact that I think most Canadians would support.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 20, 2024.
— With files from The Associated Press.