A man has confessed to murdering a gay rights activist David Kato after a "personal disagreement" in an attack last week, Ugandan police says.

David Kato, one of the country's most visible gay campaigners, was beaten to death with a hammer at his home on Thursday and died on the way to hospital.

Homosexuality is taboo in many African nations. It is illegal in 37 countries on the continent, including Uganda, and activists say few Africans are openly gay, fearing imprisonment, violence and loss of jobs.

Kato had been featured in an anti-gay newspaper in October that "outed" people it said were gay and called on the government to kill them. His photograph was published on the cover under the headline: "Hang Them."

Murder motive
The activist said he had received death threats since the publication.

"The prime suspect, Nsubuga Enock, was arrested today at around 4pm when he went to visit his girlfriend," police spokesman Vincent Ssetake said.

"He has confessed to the murder. It wasn't a robbery and it wasn't because Kato was an activist. It was a personal disagreement but I can't say more than that."

Well-known thief
Ssetake said that Enock would appear in court on Wednesday evening.

Police said last week that Enock, whom they described as a "well-known thief", had been staying with Kato after the activist bailed him out of prison on January 24.

source: Reuters