The constitutional court is set to hear 14 applications stemming from four consolidated petitions challenging the Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023.
A panel of five Constitutional Court Justices, led by Deputy Chief Justice Richard Buteera, will sit on December 13, 2023, to hear the petitions.
The petitions filed by various groups, including politicians, civil society organizations, media practitioners, and professors from Makerere University, request to strike down the Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023, which criminalizes what they term consensual sex among adults.
The other applications were filed by parties seeking to join the case to raise pertinent issues for the court’s decisive determination. Some aim to join the Attorney General to vehemently contest those in support of same-sex consensual adult relations.
The parties involved in the applications include the Southern Africa Litigation Centre, the Centre for Legal Applied Studies, various non-profit organizations, Lawyer Robert Rutaro, Pastor Martin Ssempa, E. Tendayi Achiume, the Attorney General, UNAIDS, and VIIV Healthcare Limited UK.
According to the cause list, most of these parties have multiple applications to present before the Justices.
These parties are represented by different law firms that received hearing notices on Tuesday, December 12, 2023, requiring their presence in court for the hearing. However, failure to appear may prompt the court to proceed in their absence.
These include lawyers from the Attorney General’s chambers, Onyango and Company Advocates, M/S Akampumuza and Company Advocates, Alex Harimwomugasho, and Anita Advocates (AHA Advocates).
Among the applications to be heard is one where Pastor Ssempa seeks to join the Attorney General in defending the legality of the Anti-Homosexuality Law.
Conversely, UNAIDS wishes to be involved in the petition as a friend of the court, aiming to provide crucial information on why the law must be overturned due to its potential adverse impact on the fight against HIV/AIDS.
The petitioners approached the court, arguing that the Anti-Homosexuality Law, apart from imposing severe penalties such as death and heavy fines on offenders, infringes on several constitutional articles relating to personal freedoms and dignity and hampers the fight against HIV/AIDS.
The United States government has threatened aid cuts and travel sanctions against Ugandan government officials, citing a tragic violation of human rights due to the enactment of the law in question.
Previously, in 2014, the same law was nullified by the Constitutional Court because it was passed without the required quorum. Subsequently, various Western governments suspended aid, imposed visa restrictions, and curtailed security cooperation with the Museveni-led government.
Several Western countries, including the European Union, have criticized the law, labeling it discriminatory, degrading, and inhumane. They argue that it contradicts several international laws to which Uganda is a signatory.
This precedes the main case scheduled for Monday, December 18th, 2023.
