South African Protests Breakout Over Uganda’s Anti-LGBTQ+ Law

A crowd of South Africans swarmed the streets of Pretoria and Cape Town to protest Uganda’s new controversial law concerning the LGBTQ+ community on Friday (March 31). During their protest on Friday, South African allies called on Uganda’s president Yoweri Museveni, not to sign off on the law.

According to Reuters, there were about 100 at the demonstration at Pretoria, which took place outside the United Nations Information Centre. Papa De DeLovie Kwagala, one of the protesters on the scene, and Ugandan LGBTQ rights activist said:

"World leaders should put pressure on Museveni to not sign the bill because it's not only a Ugandan issue, it is an African continent issue."

South Africans protest Uganda's anti-LGBTQ lawwww.youtube.com

Earlier in March, Uganda lawmakers passed a law that would make it illegal for people to openly claim to be affiliated with the LGBTQ+ community. Although Uganda is one of the numerous African countries that have declared same-sex relationships illicit, it would be the first country to legally ban identifying as LGBTQ+.

If it is set in motion, Uganda’s new law will subject members of the LGBTQ+ to closer scrutiny, and life imprisonment. The East African country’s legislature will also target people who aid and abet homosexuality.

South Africa has had a long history of LGBTQ+ activism. In 1994, it became the first country in Africa—and the fifth in the world—to legalize same-sex marriage. In spite of its allyship, South African LGBTQ+ members also face discrimination and violence.

In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of protests by the LGBTQ+ community in South Africa. In 2021, members of the community spoke out about the increasing homophobic attacks that they were receiving.