Ugandan president signs antigay legislation

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      Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has proceeded to do what LGBT activists and allies had feared he would do: he signed an antigay bill on February 24 that will allow for life imprisonment of gay people.

      The news arrived just after Museveni had announced on February 21 that he would delay signing the bill until scientists could prove whether homosexuality was genetic or a choice, even asking American scientists for advice.

      Museveni had also come under fire and expressions of concern from European countries and both Canada and the U.S.

      U.S. President Barack Obama, who warned him that the signing of this bill would complicate relations between the countries. Museveni fired back, asking the West to not impose their views upon Africans and calling it "social imperialism".

      However, the origins of attitudes towards homosexuality in Africa is actually quite blurred.

      The banning of gay sex by law in many African nations was a result of European colonial rule, such as in Nigeria where it was imported by British rulers.

      Also, news articles and documentaries such as God Loves Uganda contend that contemporary American fundamentalists have taken an active role in influencing antigay movements and legislation in Africa.

      Ever since the Same-Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act (also called the Jail the Gays law) was signed by President Goodluck Jonathan in Nigeria on January 7, a wave of arrests by police and homophobic attacks by citizens have swept across the West African country, which is Africa's most populous nation.

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