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(Photo: 'Justice for Ugandan human rights activist David Kato Kisule' facebook page)
Ugandan gay rights campaigner David Kato has been beaten to death, activists say. The police confirmed Kato’s death and say they have arrested one suspect. Last year Kato sued a local newspaper which had outed him as homosexual. The newspaper published the photographs of several people it said were gay next to a headline reading “Hang them”. Homosexual acts are illegal in Uganda, punishable with up to 14 years in prison. Marco Werman speaks with reporter Dennis Porter about the killing. Download MP3
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Marco Werman: Hi. I’m Marco Werman and this is The World, a coproduction of the BBC world service, PRI and WGBH, Boston. Last year, a Ugandan tabloid published the names and photos of some Ugandan gay men and women. It urged readers to go after gay activists. One of the people pictured was David Kato. Last night he was attacked and killed at his home outside Kampala, the Ugandan capital. Today, Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, called Uganda’s President to express concern. David Kato campaigned against a controversial bill that called for the death penalty for some homosexual acts. Last year, Kato spoke about how hard it was to be gay in Uganda.
David Kato: I’ve got many scars. I’ve got a scar here. I was hit with a bottle. I’ve been hit on many occasions. Even the arm is now broken here. And the issue is that you are not hit because people want to hit us, it’s just because the police make us. They excite the public.
Werman: Journalist Dennis Porter is based in East Africa and is in Kampala covering the story. Dennis, what is the mood today among people who knew David Kato?
Dennis Porter: Well, obviously it’s very somber. The death comes as a big shock to everybody. Many other gay activists here and people that work with them had been threatened but, to come to this level, well, I think it’s a big surprise to everybody. I spoke with a man, his name is Oryango Jon-Francis and he was the lawyer for David Kato.
Oryango Jon-Francis: He was a brave and very kind person. Brave in the sense that he still fought for rights that many people considered bull in a very hostile environment.
Werman: Dennis, did David Kato’s lawyer have anything to say about the circumstances of the killing? Did he indicate that it was a hate crime in anyway?
Porter: The lawyer and many of the friends of David Kato are trying to be very careful about not jumping to conclusions. At least one police officer said today that she believed it may have simply been a theft gone wrong and nobody wants to jump to any conclusions. They’ve been told by the police that at least one person is in custody and they’re hoping that by tomorrow, before the funeral, they’ll have more information.
Werman: This killing must still leave the gay community in Uganda in a pretty uneasy state. They must be scared.
Porter: Oh, they’re terrified. I mean, they were taking security measures before this and I think they’re just going to double their efforts at this point.
Werman: You know, Dennis Porter, some gays and lesbians in Uganda attribute the hostility towards them in their country to a U.S. connection and the fact that the 2009 anti-homosexuality bill in Uganda was introduced just after a conference that year in Kampala, attended by American evangelical activists who stated that homosexuality is a sin. Was there a cause and effect as a result of these American evangelicals in terms of attitude in Uganda? I mean if David Kato’s murder was in fact a hate crime, did the hate begin with that conference?
Porter: Well, the activist’s that I spoke to today, certainly believed it did. That homosexual acts have always been illegal in Uganda although, being a homosexual had not previously been illegal. After the U.S. Evangelicals came to Uganda, then that’s when the bill was introduced in parliament which would increase penalties for homosexual behavior. And also, it’s after the U.S. Evangelicals came here that one of the newspapers published the photos and the addresses of about a hundred gay activists in Uganda. So, certainly, the LGBT community here believes that the beginning of all this kind of started with those U.S. Evangelicals.
Werman: Journalist Dennis Porter in Kampala speaking with us about the death of gay activist David Kato. Thank you for your time indeed.
Porter: Thanks Marco.
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