October 22, 2007

Is PEPFAR Promoting Homophobia in Uganda?

According to Human Rights Watch, funds from the Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) are being used to fund Ugandan organizations spreading messages of homophobia (aidsmap.com, 10/22).

One such beneficiary, Pastor Martin Ssempa, has posted the pictures and contact information of leading Ugandan gay-rights activists, labeling them as “homosexual promoters.” In August, Ssempa called homosexual activities “a criminal act against the laws of nature” at a rally demanding government action against homosexuals. His church has used $40,000 in PEPFAR funds to launch an abstinence-only sexual-education program and disseminates information claiming that condoms do not offer protection against HIV.

Human Rights Watch urges U.S. leaders to closely monitor recipients of the funding, to ensure that PEPFAR is not used as a discriminatory tool.

Homosexuality is punishable with a life sentence in Uganda, where 940,000 people are currently living with HIV.