HRW reports Uganda’s campaign of hatred and violence against LGBTQ community

Uganda’s LGBTQ community has experienced escalating persecution since the introduction of stringent anti-gay legislation two years ago, an international NGO has revealed.

In a report published on Monday, May 26, 2025, Human Rights Watch (HRW) stated that Ugandan officials have engaged in extensive discrimination and violence, while also fueling misinformation and hostility toward LGBTQ individuals following the 2023 law’s passage.

The 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Act criminalizes consensual same-sex relations with penalties of up to life imprisonment, while “aggravated homosexuality” carries a possible death sentence.

Following the law’s enactment, human rights organizations and international donors condemned the measure and pulled their funding.

According to the HRW report, the Ugandan government has intensified persecution through widespread police abuses, including harassment, extortion, and arbitrary arrests targeting individuals based on real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.

HRW concluded that the law has significantly escalated existing discrimination and violence against the LGBTQ community, leading to severe human rights violations and deeply impacting the lives of LGBTQ individuals, activists, supporters, and their families across Uganda.

In the months before and after the law’s enactment, Ugandan officials including prominent political and government figures used traditional and social media platforms to spread misinformation and incite hatred against the LGBTQ community, the report states.

This campaign contributed to a rise in attacks and harassment targeting both LGBTQ individuals and advocacy groups.

“For the past two years, LGBT Ugandans have endured various abuses due to the government’s deliberate decision to institutionalize hate against them,” said Oryem Nyeko, HRW’s senior Africa researcher.

He urged Ugandan authorities to urgently create a safer environment, warning that the current climate fuels widespread human rights violations and places countless people at grave risk.

Interviewees shared accounts of increased threatening messages. One person told HRW, “People would call constantly, saying, ‘We know where you live. We know what you do.’”

Another activist recounted how online threats escalated into a violent home invasion in 2023, where three men attacked her and sexually assaulted her friend.

One assailant reportedly said, “You make me ashamed to be Ankole. If we want, we can kill you, and no one will look for you.” (Ankole is a major ethnic group in Uganda.)

Similar patterns have been reported by other Ugandan rights groups since the law took effect. Within 24 hours of its implementation, Kampala-based Defend Defenders documented eight cases of physical and sexual violence, including “corrective” rape.

“The volume of requests for assistance has been overwhelming,” a Defend Defenders staff member told HRW.

The report also highlights attacks on prominent LGBTQ organizations, including bans on group activities, arrests of staff members, and intimidation of lawyers defending queer clients.

HRW reached out to government, legal, and police authorities for comment but did not receive any response.