IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1064 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the ‘‘Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2009’’ under consideration by the Parliament of Uganda, 

that would impose long-term imprisonment and the death penalty for 

certain acts, threatens the protection of fundamental human rights, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 3, 2010 

Mr. BERMAN (for himself, Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. FRANK of 

Massachusetts, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. 

POLIS of Colorado, Mr. SCOTT of Georgia, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. DOYLE, 

Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. STARK, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. PALLONE, 

Mr. TOWNS, Mr. SIRES, Mr. WU, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. 

ACKERMAN, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. COHEN, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. ELLISON, 

Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. MCMAHON, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. NADLER of New York, Mr. 

GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. EDWARDS of Maryland, Ms. 

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas, 

Mr. HONDA, Mr. DELAHUNT, Ms. LINDA T. SA ́NCHEZ of California, Mr. 

JACKSON of Illinois, and Mr. GRIJALVA) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

the ‘‘Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2009’’ under consideration 

by the Parliament of Uganda, that would impose longterm imprisonment and the death penalty for certain 

acts, threatens the protection of fundamental human 

rights, and for other purposes. 


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•HRES 1064 IH 

Whereas, on September 25, 2009, legislation was introduced 

in the Ugandan Parliament entitled the ‘‘Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2009’’ to strengthen and expand existing antihomosexuality laws to prohibit any form of sexual relations between persons of the same sex; 

Whereas the legislation would severely punish ‘‘homosexual 

behavior’’ and individuals who ‘‘attempt’’ homosexual 

acts, including by life in prison or the death penalty; 

Whereas the legislation creates offenses and penalties for 

Ugandan citizens and other individuals who fail to report 

‘‘homosexual behavior’’ within 24 hours of acquiring such 

knowledge, and imposes stiff fines and up to three years 

imprisonment for community members who fail to report 

suspected cases of homosexuality; 

Whereas the legislation creates an offense of ‘‘aggravated homosexuality’’ that would impose the death penalty for 

certain same-sex acts, including acts in which the partner 

is HIV-positive; 

Whereas the proposed legislation could severely curtail the 

ability of public health institutions and nongovernmental 

organizations to address effectively HIV/AIDS among 

vulnerable groups such as men who have sex with men 

(MSM), by subjecting such institutions to the revocation 

of their registration, certificates, and their directors to 

seven-year prison terms; 

Whereas the proposed legislation would nullify any international treaties, conventions, protocols, agreements, and 

any other legal instruments signed by Uganda whose provisions ‘‘are contradictory to the spirit and provisions enshrined in the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2009’’, such as 


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•HRES 1064 IH 

those that protect the rights of individuals regardless of 

sexual orientation; 

Whereas the legislation provides for jurisdiction of Ugandan 

courts in cases of homosexuality, including extra-territorial jurisdiction to cover Ugandan citizens outside of 

the geographic boundaries of Uganda, an extreme measure that currently only applies to severe criminal offenses 

in Uganda’s penal code, including treason and terrorism; 

Whereas the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief 

(PEPFAR) Five Year Strategy released on December 1, 

2009, asserts that ‘‘PEPFAR’s prevention strategies 

must be responsive to the drivers of the epidemic and address the needs of most-at risk populations’’, and specifically prioritizes MSM as an at-risk ‘‘strategic population’’ 

in need of prevention, care, and treatment programs that 

are free from stigma and discrimination directed towards 

clients; 

Whereas under PEPFAR, Uganda received approximately 

$91 million in fiscal year (FY) 2004, more than $148 

million in FY2005, approximately $170 million in 

FY2006, $237 million in FY2007, $284 million in 

FY2008, and $286 million in FY2009 to support a comprehensive HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment 

program; 

Whereas United States assistance to Uganda to combat HIV/ 

AIDS has resulted in 145,000 individuals receiving 

antiretroviral treatment as of September 2008, 393,200 

HIV-positive individuals receiving care and support, 

754,000 orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) served 

by an OVC program, 2,076,300 pregnant women receiving HIV counseling and testing services for the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT), 


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•HRES 1064 IH 

104,000 HIV-positive pregnant women receiving 

antiretroviral prophylaxis for PMTCT, 20,043,400 counseling and testing encounters in FY2008, and 6,256,800 

individuals reached with community outreach HIV/AIDS 

prevention programs that promote abstinence or being 

faithful and condom use; 

Whereas, according to the American Foundation for AIDS 

Research (amfAR), in low- and middle-income countries, 

MSM are 19 times more likely to be infected with HIV 

than the general population; 

Whereas the United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS 

(UNAIDS) identifies elevated risk of HIV infection 

among MSM as one of the 6 key, overarching themes 

identified in the 2009 AIDS Epidemic Update, and asserts that ‘‘programmes to prevent new infections among 

these key populations must constitute an important part 

of national AIDS response’’; 

Whereas a 2009 joint report by the Uganda AIDS Commission and UNAIDS specifically called for a review of legal 

impediments to the inclusion of most-at-risk populations 

in the national AIDS response; 

Whereas countries whose laws do not criminalize homosexuality are generally regarded as better able to curb the 

transmission of the virus, and the ability to more effectively address HIV was a pivotal factor in the recent decision of the High Court of New Delhi to repeal section 

337 of the Indian penal code outlawing sodomy; 

Whereas both Democratic and Republican United States lawmakers have called on President Yoweri Museveni of 

Uganda to oppose the proposed ‘‘Anti-Homosexuality 

Bill, 2009’’ and, in a December 2009 letter, several ConVerDate Nov 24 2008 02:11 Feb 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR1064.IH HR1064

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•HRES 1064 IH 

gressional leaders stated that the legislation is antithetical to the foundational belief in the ‘‘inherent dignity 

and worth of all men and women’’; 

Whereas Champions for an HIV-Free Generation, a group of 

former African Presidents and other influential persons, 

has called for the withdrawal of Uganda’s ‘‘Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2009’’; 

Whereas a broad range of religious leaders, including Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Evangelical leaders, have 

condemned publicly the proposed legislation; 

Whereas the Catholic Bishops of Uganda have described the 

bill as ‘‘at odds with the core values of the Christian 

faith’’; 

Whereas President Barack Obama has stated that he 

‘‘strongly opposes efforts, such as the draft law pending 

in Uganda, that would criminalize homosexuality and 

move against the tide of history’’; 

Whereas in December 2009, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke out against the bill stating that ‘‘law should 

not become an instrument of oppression’’; 

Whereas the United States has declared its commitment to 

working internationally to end violence, detention, and 

execution based on sexual orientation; and 

Whereas the proposed legislation violates the spirit of Article 

2 of the African Charter of Human and People’s Rights 

adopted in 1981 and entered into force in 1986 that 

states, ‘‘Every individual shall be entitled to the enjoyment of rights and freedoms recognized and guaranteed 

in the present Charter without distinction of any kind 

such as race, ethnic group, color, sex, language, religion, 


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•HRES 1064 IH 

political or any other opinion, national and social origin, 

fortune, birth or other status’’: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) strongly believes that— 

3 (A) all people possess an intrinsic human 

4 dignity, regardless of sexual orientation, and 

5 share fundamental human rights; 

6 (B) the ‘‘Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2009’’ 

7 introduced in the Ugandan Parliament, which 

8 includes the extreme penalties of death and life 

9 in prison, poses a serious threat to the life, lib10 erty, and security of the person and, if enacted, 

11 would set a troubling precedent for other coun12 tries; and 

13 (C) the requirement that individuals report 

14 suspected homosexual individuals to the Ugan15 dan Government could undermine Uganda’s ef16 forts to combat HIV/AIDS, and interfere with 

17 care and counseling by family members, doc18 tors, pastors, teachers, and others; and 

19 (2) calls upon the President and the Secretary 

20 of State to— 

21 (A) impress upon the Ugandan Govern22 ment the United States belief in the intrinsic 

23 human dignity of all Ugandans, regardless of 

24 sexual orientation; 


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•HRES 1064 IH 

1 (B) express unequivocal United States op2 position to the ‘‘Anti-Homosexuality Bill, 2009’’ 

3 introduced in the Ugandan Parliament; and 

4 (C) ensure that resources committed to the 

5 global HIV/AIDS response are utilized in a 

6 manner that is efficient, effective, and appro7 priate to the local epidemiology of the disease, 

8 including in Uganda. 

Æ 


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