David Cecil after being arrested in Uganda. (Photo Credit: Stephen Wandera, AP)

British theatre producer David Cecil was arrested back in September for his work on the play The River and the Mountain, which features a gay character who is ultimately killed by his own employees. Prosecutors claimed the play was staged “against lawful orders,” but a Ugandan court has dismissed those charges. Now, his lawyer is prepared to sue the government for malicious prosecution:

A win for freedom in Uganda! A case against a British script producer, David Cecil (accused of staging a “homosexual play”-The Mountain and the River and disobeying “lawful” orders) has been dismissed for lack of evidence by the Magistrates Court at Makindye. We can now sue the State for the malicious prosecution. This is the type of work I’m willing to do for the rest of my life. No man should be arrested, detained, charged and imprisoned arbitrarily for expressing himself. Rights and Freedoms are inherent and not granted by cultural and religious beliefs/institutions, families, parents, the Government or the State.

Despite the incessant anticipation of anti-gay legislation and hostile climate for Ugandan gays and lesbians, the Ugandan courts have repeatedly ruled in favor of LGBT advocates when they are unfairly targeted by the media or government forces.

Uganda Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi

Despite expectations the Ugandan Parliament might imminently consider the “Kill The Gays” Anti-Homosexuality Bill, the legislation has been pushed down the agenda to a lower spot, raising questions as to whether it might even come up before the holidays. Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi has made a peculiar statement about homosexuality that seemingly softens the government’s support of the bill while continuing to endorse a ban on LGBT advocacy:

MBABAZI: In Uganda, we have had homosexuality for generations. Everybody knows it. You know, various local languages, we have a name for homosexuals, don’t we? We do. That means it has been there. Whoever had the homosexual was.. was killed. But there is a way in our cultures, we handle them to show our displeasure and no-acceptance of homosexual activities — homosexuality and homosexual activities, you should mark the difference between the two. Okay?

We know that in our own Penal Code, we carried this from the British. We amended this law, the Penal Code by Parliament (I’ve forgotten the year). That particular provision was amended. So it is unlawful already. So to the extent that it is unlawful, and the attempt in this bill to repeat what is already unlawful is not something we’ll support, supporting what is already in the bill. Why? Why would we support it? Because it’s already covered.

But there are certain aspects which may be new, like promotion of homosexuality, things like that. Those are things, when we come to debate, we’ll [unintelligible]… We set up a committee which has made a report, we go through this…

Watch it:

As Box Turtle Bulletin notes, the statement is a puzzling one. Uganda has received a lot of negative international attention from not just the Anti-Homosexuality bill, but also financial scandals in the Prime Minister’s office and civil wars. Perhaps minimizing attention to this particular bill is one way to win back some international favor. Still, given the frequent myths circulated by the legislation’s proponents, the statement could simply be further obfuscations.

The Ugandan daily tabloid Red Pepper printed pictures today allegedly of Chris Mubiru, head of the Uganda National Football Team (the Cranes), “sodomizing players.” Gay Star News notes that the publication ran five such photos, with headlines like “MASTER AT WORK: Mubiru nails the boys butt” and “END GAME: The boy struggles to stand up after the bum shattering session.” The player is not identified, nor does anything confirm the validity of the pictures.

The pictures are clearly designed to stir up moral outrage as the nation’s Parliament considers the “kill the gays” Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which would assign life sentences or the death penalty for homosexual acts or knowledge thereof. Both Red Pepper and a similar magazine, Rolling Stone, have exposed Ugandan citizens they believe to be gays or lesbians, printing their names, photos, and even addresses. Gay activist David Kato was murdered just days after he was exposed by Rolling Stone.

Queerty points out that the photos published today are from (or or meant to resemble) a 2010 incident in which Mubiru supposedly gave a player an unwelcome massage.

Our guest blogger is Irene Morse, intern with LGBT Progress.

Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” Bill has been making headlines recently and has prompted a conversation about anti-gay laws and attitudes abroad.  There are 78 countries that criminalize homosexuality, and five of these use the death penalty as punishment for homosexuality.  For many LGBT individuals in repressive countries such as Uganda, leaving is the only viable option, and many turn to the U.S. for asylum.

Since 1994, refugees have been able to gain legal residence based on persecution for their sexual orientation.  A year ago today (December 6^th) President Obama issued a memorandum that required greater awareness of LGBT individuals seeking asylum and training for immigration officials.  This memo was a step in the right direction, but there is still much that could be done to improve the lives of those sexual minorities who seek asylum in the US.  The federal government must begin to:

Collect data on applications based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

In 2011 the US received 56,384 applications for asylum and granted 24,988 (44%) of them, but has no data on how many of these cases related to sexual orientation or gender identity.  Collecting this data would make the international community more aware of the pervasive persecution of LGBT individuals and would help assess whether persecution of LGBT people is increasing or decreasing globally.

Create clear and inclusive legal standards for what it means to be LGBT.

Many asylum applicants run into problems if they fail to sufficiently prove that they are LGBT.  Applicants from countries like India that still define homosexuality in terms of specific criminal sex acts are less likely to gain asylum.  It is also nearly impossible for closeted individuals to gain asylum, because they are unlikely to join LGBT groups or activities out of fear of government reprisal.

Train civil servants on issues related to sexual orientation and gender identity.

LGBT asylum applicants often have trouble completing the process when immigration officials rely on stereotypes of LGBT people or are homophobic.  For example, an immigration officer denied a gay Iranian man’s asylum application on the basis that he was “not feminine in any way.”  As a result, applicants are often encouraged to “flaunt” their sexuality, a standard which is obviously problematic.

Pass the Restoring Protection for Victims of Persecution Act (H.R. 2981).

Currently individuals who have lived in the US for longer than a year are barred from receiving asylum, a rule which has impeded the process for 21,000 refugees.  This is especially problematic for LGBT individuals who may have recently come out, undergone gender transition, or struggled with severe psychological trauma.  H.R. 2981 would eliminate the one-year application deadline, allowing more LGBT refugees to successfully gain asylum.

The US receives more requests for asylum than any other country.  President Obama took a positive step a year ago when he acknowledged the difficulties faced by these individuals, but more action must be taken before the US can truly be a refuge for LGBT individuals who have been denied a life in their home countries.

Citibank is one of the largest businesses and employers in Uganda, but the company refuses to take a position against the proposed “Kill The Gays” bill. Over 500,000 have petitioned the company, as well as Barclays, to come out against the odious proposal if only to protect its employees and customers in the country. Citibank responded to the petition today, but only reiterated its nondiscrimination policy:

While the laws and cultural norms in some countries where Citi operates differ from commonly accepted global standards for human rights, Citi supports equality without regard for, among other personal characteristics, race, gender, gender identity or expression, disability, age, nationality, or sexual orientation.

“Supporting equality” is a particularly weak statement in response to a bill that would blatantly persecute gay people and their allies with life sentences in prison or the death penalty. Barclays at least took the added step of acknowledging the bill and its opposition:

Barclays has a strong history of supporting all aspects of diversity, both in the workplace and in wider society. Equally, we are proud of playing our part in the development of economies across Africa, and the key role Barclays plays in the lives of millions of our African customers. Barclays is aware of the proposed legislation relating to homosexuality in Uganda and we are engaging at appropriate levels of the Ugandan Government to express our views.

Sign the Change.org petition to encourage these banking giants to use their significant corporate influence to protect the lives of LGBT citizens.

The Family Research Council is engaging in some very interesting damage control spin this week over its present and past support of Uganda’s “Kill The Gays” bill, which may pass before the end of the year. Earlier this week, Tony Perkins applauded statements by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, but now he is trying to claim that FRC has never supported Uganda’s heightened criminal sanctions for homosexuality:

For years, the African nation has been condemned for its severe laws criminalizing homosexuality. Despite allegations to the contrary, FRC has never supported that policy–or any policy that imposes the death penalty on homosexuals. What we do oppose is the suggestion that gay and lesbian acts are universal human rights. So when Congress introduced a resolution in 2010 denouncing Uganda’s punishment for homosexuality, FRC fought–at the request of some Members–to strike the pro-homosexual “human rights” language from the final measure.

First, it’s egregious enough that Perkins boasts his group’s opposition to the human rights of gays and lesbians, which would include freedom from violence and harassment, freedom to love, and freedom to raise a family. But what’s galling is that his denial of supporting Uganda’s bill is an outright lie. Though it has been scrubbed from FRC’s website, a distinct audio and visual record still exists documenting FRC’s blatant support of the “Kill The Gays” bill, death penalty and all. Jeremy Hooper provides them both; listen to it:

To be clear, in 2010, the Family Research Council described — in Tony Perkins’ own words — Uganda’s “Kill The Gays” bill as an effort “to uphold moral conduct.” And now, Perkins has the gall to accuse groups like the Human Rights Council and Southern Poverty Law Center of “fostering a culture of hatred and violence,” as if they somehow recruited and encouraged the rogue shooter who opened fire on FRC’s offices earlier this year. Perkins’ interpretation of who is tolerant and who is violent does not reflect reality.