On Friday, August 5, the National Bureau for Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO Bureau) in Uganda announced, through a press release, the halting of operations of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) with immediate effect. According to the Bureau’s statement, this decision is based on SMUG’s failure to be registered before the NGO Bureau, contrary to Section 29 (1), […]
On Friday, August 5, the National Bureau for Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO Bureau) in Uganda announced, through a press release, the halting of operations of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) with immediate effect. According to the Bureau’s statement, this decision is based on SMUG’s failure to be registered before the NGO Bureau, contrary to Section 29 (1), 31(1) and 31 (2) of the NGO Act 2016.
The NGO Bureau also noted that SMUG had made an attempt to reserve its name with Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) in 2012 for incorporation purposes which was rejected. In its statement, SMUG provides more details by referring to a letter from the URSB mentioning that the name (Sexual Minorities Uganda) was “undesirable and un-registrable”. And that “the proposed company to be incorporated to advocate for the rights and wellbeing of Lesbians, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenders and Queer persons, which persons are engaged in activities labeled criminal acts under sec.145 of the penal code act”. This clearly demonstrates the willingness of the Ugandan government and its agencies to restrict the freedoms of Ugandan citizens who identify as LGBTQ+, in violation of international treaties and
conventions that the country has signed and ratified.
COC Nederland denounces this violation of International human rights and the determination of the Ugandan authorities to restrict the civic space, particularly for gender and sexual minorities in Uganda. Beyond the case of SMUG, COC Nederland also expresses its deep concern for the freedoms of all LGBTQ+ organizations in Uganda and their allies.
It is not just human rights advocacy that is affected, closing space for gender and sexual minorities means losing access to critical services including health services— which in some instances can make the difference between life and death. This decision compromises efforts to demand for better health services in a volatile environment for the LGBTQ+ community. Hence, in solidarity with SMUG, COC Nederland calls on the bureau to lift the ban and live up to the obligations deriving from international human rights instruments that Uganda has committed to.
