The Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2014 (AHA, for short) has been struck down by the Kampala Constitutional Court in Kampala, Uganda.
What’s most striking about this event is that anti-homosexuality is firmly emphasized and embedded into the Ugandan mindset, but the law was struck down for reasons that have nothing to do with its merits; rather, the reason for the judicial ruling was legal, not moral.
The five justices on the Constitutional Court panel ruled that the AHA did not secure the required number of votes it needed to pass the law. This ruling leaves the door open that at some point in the near future, the AHA will get the votes it needs to enter into law – the legal way.
The reaction from Uganda’s LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex) community has been celebratory. Just moments after the Constitutional Court’s ruling, LGBTI members started sending text messages, phone calls, emails, and even social media status updates. A Kampalan source told The Huffington Post that David Bahati, the creator of the AHA, created a press conference immediately after the ruling and said that he’d get the AHA sent back to Parliament for an approval vote.
Meanwhile, AHA advocates who’re upset with the Constitutional Court’s ruling have taken to the streets, threatening to “slaughter” homosexual gays and lesbians as a result of the ruling. In other words, now that the AHA has been struck down, it seems that Ugandan citizens may take actions into their own hands – which’ll result in nothing but insecurity and lack of peace for LGBTI citizens.
Uganda has been strongly opposed to the legislation of homosexuality, and the latest unconstitutional ruling on the Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA) is nothing but a mere setback for what many believe to be an inevitable piece of legislation that already has an over-the-wall approval rate. While LGBTI citizens celebrate, the celebration may indeed be short-lived. If AHA advocates like Bahati and his followers are as adamant as they appear to be, this setback and LGBTI victory won’t last for long in Uganda.