Rights activists and UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima has faulted President Yoweri Museveni for assenting into law the tough anti-gay Bill saying it will reverse the fight against HIV Aids.
In an interview with Sky News from Geneva, Switzerland, Winnie said the toughening of laws against the LGBTQ+ community sets them up for discrimination when seeking treatment for HIV and related ailments.
She says the law will get in the way of their quest to access life-saving medical attention and in turn, undermine Uganda's HIV response.
"People living with HIV who happen to be also gay or transgender women will be further discriminated, there will be more discrimination, they will be pushed away from services that could save their lives," she said.
"This law sets us back to end Aids, we can't end Aids unless everyone can be reached by services for prevention and treatment," Winnie added.
Speaker of Uganda's Parliament Anita Among confirmed on Monday that Museveni had assented to the revised Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 in the exercise of his constitutional powers stipulated under Article 91 (30(a).
"The people of Uganda have spoken and, it's your duty now to enforce the law in a fair, steadfast, and firm manner," the speaker told law enforcement agencies in a message via Twitter.
Museveni called for a review of the law to punish people who practice same-sex relations and promoters of the lifestyle amongst minors.
While terming them disgusting during a 2016 BBC interview, the non-compromising Ugandan leader said there is no proof that homosexuals were born that way.
"Of course they are disgusting, what sought of people are they? I never knew what they were doing, I have been told recently that what they do is terrible and disgusting," he said.
Uganda's Parliament overwhelmingly voted to pass the Bill on March 21 with only one of the 389 MPs who attended the debate objecting to its enactment.
The law prescribes the death penalty for aggravated homosexuality or forcing children, the disabled, mentally ill persons and those of advanced age into homosexuality.
Attempted homosexuality will attract a 14-year jail term and up to 20 years for the promotion of homosexuality.
Recruiters of children into homosexuality will be slapped with a ten-year jail sentence.
