LGBTQI Refugees in Uganda Urgently Need Support

What was already a perilous situation for the LGBTQI+ community in Uganda has become even more dire.

On May 29th, the president of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, signed into law the Anti-Homosexuality Act, criminalizing LGBTQI+ people for simply being who they are, violating their human rights, and subjecting them to direct state violence. This bill means imprisonment and possibly even the death penalty for LGBTQI+ people, and Angels Refugee Support Foundation (ARSF) is urgently working to protect people against this egregious violation of human rights.

Background: Uganda’s Refugee Act, passed in 2006, was widely considered to have the potential to make important contributions toward human rights-based refugee policies globally. For LGBTQI+ refugees who fled to Uganda to escape persecution and violence, this progressive policy is overshadowed by ongoing and extreme hostility towards LGBTQI+ people in Uganda, resulting in reduced access to health care and necessary services, harassment by police, and direct violence.

The 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Bill worsens this already abusive context and carries severe punishment for “promoting homosexuality” and “aggravated homosexuality”, including prison sentences of up to 20 years and even the death penalty. The full force of the state is being used to hunt down, expose, demean and suppress Uganda’s LGBTQI+ people.

This situation is worse still for LGBTQI+ refugees, whose status in Uganda is already precarious. Intersecting oppressions mean that LGBTQI+ refugees are in extremely dangerous positions and require significant support to leave Kampala for communities where they are less likely to be identified and targeted by police.

ARSF: Angels Refugee Support Foundation (ARSF) is an LGBTQI+ refugee founded, led, and run organization working in Kampala and within three refugee settlements: Nakivale, Kyaka II and Rwamwanja. ARSF has been addressing the unmet need to advance the rights and social inclusion of LGBTQI+ refugees fleeing persecution in the surrounding East and Horn of Africa countries. ARSF is working hard, within extremely dangerous conditions, to continue to protect the community it serves, move people to safer areas, and helping LGBTQI+ refugees to access necessary services without drawing the attention of police.

ARSF staff are themselves at great risk, both as members and supporters of the LGBTQI+ community. In addition to having been criminalized as LGBTQI+ individuals, they could be tried for “promoting homosexuality” as a result of supporting their community, a charge that carries up to 20 years imprisonment upon conviction.

How you can help: This situation is urgent and people’s lives are at risk. Every dollar donated will be transferred to ARSF. Please donate what you can and share the campaign within your network to raise both awareness and funds in support of ARSF’s crucial work protecting LGBTQI+ refugees in Uganda.