John Kerry compares Ugandan anti-gay law to apartheid and anti-Semitism
US Secretary of State John Kerry has compared Uganda’s newly introduced anti-gay law with anti-Semitism in Nazi Germany and apartheid in South Africa.
The law calls for repeat offenders to be sentenced to 14 years in prison and makes it a criminal offence not to report someone for being gay.
Speaking to reporters about the bill, Kerry described it as “atrocious”, and described such laws around the world as “a global problem”.
He said: “You could change the focus of this legislation to black or Jewish and you could be in 1930s Germany or you could be in 1950-60s apartheid South Africa.”
“It was wrong there egregiously in both places and it is wrong here,” he continued.
Going on, he said: “What is happening in Uganda is atrocious and it presents all of us with an enormous challenge because LGBT rights are human rights and the signing of this anti-homosexuality law is flat out morally wrong,
“This anti-gay movement is obviously bubbling up in various places around the world; it is not just an African problem, it’s a global problem, and we are wrestling with it and we are going to as we go forward.”
Sweden has also said it will review its aid spending.
UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said he was “deeply saddened and disappointed”.
