darren_stranger | Petition on Ugandan anti-gay laws

From AVAAZ:

With the decision expected in days, only an irresistible wave of worldwide pressure will be enough to save Frank's life and many others. Let’s build a huge petition to stop the gay death law -- click here to take action, then forward this email:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/uganda_rights_5/?vl

The petition will be delivered to President Museveni and the parliament at the end of this week by top Ugandan civil society and Church leaders. But Pro-death penalty advocates are well organised and well funded, so our voices need to be louder than theirs!

The bill proposes life imprisonment for anyone convicted of having same-sex relations and imposes the death penalty for “serial offenders”. NGOs working to prevent the spread of HIV could be imprisoned for up to 7 years for “promoting homosexuality”. Even members of the public face up to three years in jail if they fail to report homosexual activity to the police within 24 hours!

The bill’s advocates claim that it defends national culture, but its strongest critics come from within Uganda. The Reverend Canon Gideon Byamugisha is one of many who’s written to us – he says,

It is violating our cultures, traditions and religious values that teach against intolerance, injustice, hatred and violence. We need laws to protect people -- not ones that will humiliate, ridicule, persecute and kill them en masse.