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Monday 13 February RNW - NEWS AND ANALYSIS FROM THE NETHERLANDS IN 10 LANGUAGES, WORLDWIDE 24/7 ON RADIO, TV AND ONLINE

The State We're In - Gay in Uganda

On air: 19 December 2009 0:30 - 24 December 2009 19:45 (Photo: RNW)

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The State We’re In, 19 December 2009: With Uganda considering extremely repressive laws against gay people, we talk to one man who fled the country and discovered later that authorities had beaten his brother to death trying to find out where he’d gone. We also talk to a prominent pastor who believes that being gay is a lifestyle choice and that gay people are not welcome in today’s Uganda.

Listen to this week's show in full:

We're always searching for personal stories about human rights and how we treat each other. Do you have a story to share with us? If so click here.
  
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Gay and out of Uganda
John Bosco enjoyed his life in Kampala, Uganda. He’d just graduated from university, found work as a banker and had a great social life. Then the pub he often went to with his gay friends got raided. John wasn’t there at the time, but heard the police announce his name on the radio. John went into hiding. The police wanted his family to disclose his whereabouts. They beat his brother to death. John fled to the UK where he finally tasted freedom. Then in 2008, John was deported back to Uganda. He tells Jonathan how he feared for his life, and how he made it back to the UK where he now lives.


Anti-gay pastor
Martin Ssempa is a powerful pastor in Uganda. His anti-gay views have the ear of politicians at the highest levels and his charismatic manner makes him appealing to many Ugandans. We ask him why he thinks targeting homosexuals is justified.

Herders in the city
Mongolia is the last nomadic nation on earth, but in recent years its capital city of Ulaan Bator has swelled to become home to half the country’s entire population. Dheera Sujan talks to one herding family to find out why they’ve abandoned their old lives to come to the city.

From farm to slum
Teodoro and his family are among 3 to 4 million internally displaced villagers in Colombia. Pushed out of the land by paramilitaries working for wealthy landowners, they now live in a slum just outside Bogota. Correspondent Nadja Drost spends a day in their life.

The hidden story of the Karen

It’s the world’s longest running conflict, but most of the world doesn’t know that the Karen ethnic group is losing its farms and homes to the Burmese army. Phil Thornton talks to Karen farmers who are living life on the run.

  • Gay and out of Uganda: John Bosco<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Anti-gay pastor: Martin Ssempa<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • David Bahati: the MP tabling Uganda&#039;s anti-homosexuality bill<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Herders in the city: Muinkhbat makes a hard living at his small stall in the wood market<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Herders in the city: Four-year-old Urna and six-year-old Bolor Erdeme<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Herders in the city: Munguntsetseg, 29, makes salty milk tea in her ger<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: displaced farmers make a new camp<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: jungle school<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: jungle school<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: gathering food <br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: queueing for rations at Noe Poh refugee camp<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: seed distribution<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: relief workers<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • The hidden story of the Karen: at the clinic<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • From farm to slum: Teodoro, a Senu Indian, one of Colombia&#039;s displaced millions<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • From farm to slum: Teodoro and his never-ending paperwork<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • From farm to slum: Teodoro helps his community to seek benefits<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english

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Discussion

Anonymous 11 January 2010 - 12:07am / USA

If Uganda wants to be so morally right, then they should be able to sustain themselves without help from the "non-moral west" - my vote - give them no more aid and use the aid to take care of our own.

Anonymous 29 December 2009 - 3:48am / Indonesian

Well,in my country we discriminate them.They can not have a position in major occupation like teacher,army,police,doctor,and political position.They are disscusting

Balugiire Roanld 28 December 2009 - 9:52am / uganda

I would like to commend Pr ssempa for the stand he has taken.This is the way to Go and we are supporting him.Our efforts are not on death per se but on criminalizing sodomy which intend to eat up our moral fabric.Bravo Dr Ssempa.

Eze II 25 December 2009 - 5:36pm / Nigeria

The so-called civilized West should stop meddling with the internal system or cultures that sustained other countries or nation states from time long distant past. The West came to Africa and said we are naked monkeys, and had no form of civilization - they introduced Christain Religion and convinced our people that we were naked barbarians, and brought clothes. What is happening now? They now go about naked in beaches, halls, reception and anywhere, have sex in the open in the name of freedom and modernity; they kill at slightest provocation without any remorse; their corporate bodies such as banks and financials hpuses do everything to steal peoples' monies entrusted in their care in varying disguises. As for religion, they have twisted the teaching of the Bible and our Lord Jesus Christ; changed and challenged the very basis of christain beliefs to suit their own whims and caprices, all in the name of advanced nations' "superior intelligence" and liberalism. Christmas has been renamed Holidays, and the teachings twisted and short changed to what they think is scientifically provable. Socially, the family and marriage are mere shadows of what God actually wanted them to be or even what societies had known them to be thousands of years in the past. These are now societal shame - marriage is avenues for acquiring wealth, while family meant nonsense. Children are born out of wedlock with relish - fatherless, motherless and belonging to no known families is the norm. Welfarism cannot subsitute family values and cohesion. All we have now is increased family entropy. How far can I go to name the destruction the western way of life have destroyed what others hold sacred and have kept their societies firm. Uganda, and Africa as a whole should be allowed to live their ancesteral way of life. They do not interfer in the West's way of life. Why should a man have sex with a man or a woman claim she does not need a man: who will be the bearers of the children they would buy in the name of adoption? You know through where they will get them. We are not animals. It was a descration of African land and cultures. This was one evil from the Western life style that is trying to destroy world stablity. Soon they will start having sex with animals and soon it will be equated with civil right and apartheid. The Africans will be cajoled to follow suit, because the "West provides them with life, air, water land and spirit: the so called aid". Who caused the deprivations in Africa? Was it not the disruption of African stable and moral way of life and plunddering of African wealth and insiduous altering of their stable way of life. The AIDS, disease that is ravaging Africa that the so called West is making a hell of noise to cure in Africa has its origin not from Africa. The West's shameful and ungodly way of life is responsible. Africans has embraced the true God, and want to live the way humans live, carry on with their culture. Then drastic measures has to be applied by their leaders to maintain their peoples' peculiar way of life and true relation with their true God , obey His laws. Why pesecute them with threat of the so called AIDS or aids. Why can't the World have diversity? Must everyone speak eat, dance and do everything an American or Europeans do? We are diverse people and God wants it to be so. Any African who wishes to descrate the land can apply to live outside Africa, and the West who love and encourage to disobey the established authorities should welcome them to come over to them. We will love this but let them live there for ever. This is because we cannot afford to combat the ravaging diseases and the social upheaveal that will surely be associated with this bizzare behavious due to our limited resources, whcih the west are exploiting to beat us to line and live their way of chosen life style. We abhors single family system, sodomy and spilling blood without cause, we cherish our family cohesion and maintenace of family continuity. We take care of our family members to old age and death. In African homelessness is unheard of except those who are mentally sick and ran way from home or those that committed abominations and are driven away. The so called technologically advanced nations but to me uncivilized should let Africa and Uganda to sort out their way of life. The West has turned away from God; they want everyone to follow their weired way of life in the name of modernity without God. Do not insult our intelligence by insinuating that Africa is being influenced by American Evangelical, for, if it were so where were the American Evangelical and morality got totally destroyed so far. Compromises, and here America, the Land of God has been turned to something else - going Godless, and increasing moral depravation. LEAVE UGANDS AND AFRICA ALONE!!! Wars that destabilize Africa now are encouraged, promoted and financed from the West. Otherwise from where can these rag-tag armies get the means to prosecute any of the African wars? The wars beenefit the so-called advanced nations economically. LEAVE US ALONE. GOD WILL BLESS AND UGUNDA NOT MAN OR ANY WEALTY NATION.

Jason 10 January 2010 - 12:30pm / Canada

While it may not be right for the west to get involved in internal policies of African countries it is most certainly not the responsability of the west to subsidize behavior that it sees as morally reprehensible.
By taking a stand by threatening to cut its funding, the western nations are saying in a non-violent way that we will not support countries that support the murder of people based on their sexual preference. This is an extreme form of leaving "UGANDS AND AFRICA ALONE" as you seem to wish.

Greg Kelly 28 December 2009 - 2:52pm / Netherlands

Dear EZ II: I'm the editor of The State We're In and would like to contact you directly. Please let me know how at greg.kelly@rnw.nl
Please bear in mind that the holiday season may mean I can't get back to you as soon as I'd like to, but I'll do my best.
Thanks,
Greg

Anonymous 22 December 2009 - 8:34pm / USA

I so glad Reverend Martin is looking out for God. We can justify any horror in the name of God. I'd like to tell the good reverend and religious extremists around the world that God is a big boy and can take care of himself without the help of insignifcant man.

I found it amusing when the reverend said we need to placate God or great natural disasters will occur in Uganda like floods or drought. What a superstitious twit.

Hiram 22 December 2009 - 9:12pm / USA

"We can justify any horror in the name of God.".......You are right. What is horror? Horror is the results of one's feelings about the negative events in his or her's perception of reality. Horror is a personal perception and when enough people, who perceive the same horror, get together they form rules of conduct and then enforce those standards of conduct on everyone they can. Do you think that might be happening in Uganda? If one sees the end results of people who have died from multiply diseases which were caused by hopmosexuals and their transmission of HIV through unprotected sex, one would see the horror of such a lifestyle and speak against it. As I said, you are right. { G-d doesn't need the help of man to destroy man because mankind has placed itself above the Creatror and is destroying itself. Mankind produces it own horrors and blames it's horrors on the Creator { Anonymous, why have you stereotyped G-d as being a "big boy"? Is G-d such a threat to your humanistic, belief system? Just wondering!

Jason 10 January 2010 - 12:33pm / Canada

So HIV is caused by homosexuals and their unprotected sexual adventures?
How then, Hiram, do straight people get it, or people who are married...
Just wondering!

Morals matter 22 December 2009 - 7:49pm / USA

Many countries still have prejudiced laws on the books against religious minorities, racial minorities, and homosexuals. In the west the oppressors are on the run, but Ugandas discriminatory laws are particularly evil. The west should treat Uganda like South Africa was once treated, cut off all aid until they turn from the fascist path they are on.

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