Kampala - Ugandan government ministers convened a special meeting Thursday to toughen existing laws against homosexuals and lesbians, the east African country's ethics minister said. The meeting, convened by the ministers for justice and constitutional affairs and Uganda's attorney general, came two days after a mass anti-gay rally in the capital Kampala.
"We are meeting together with the attorney general to amend the laws on homosexuality. The laws have loopholes and are weak. We want also to find out which foreign organizations are funding the homosexuals in the country," Ethics and Integrity Minister James Nsaba Buturo told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
An unknown but growing number of gays in Uganda have been carrying out a clandestine campaign for their rights, to the anger of religious leaders in the mainly conservative country.
Hooded gays recently held an unannounced and impromptu news conference in a Kampala hotel, prompting Christian and Muslim leaders to mobilize a mass rally in Kampala Tuesday, denouncing homosexuals and lesbians and calling for tougher legislation against their "lifestyle."
Same-sex relationships are illegal in Uganda, where a person found guilty of having had sexual intercourse with someone from the same gender can be sentenced to life in prison. This law has, however, never been enforced.
Buturo, a prominent anti-gay campaigner, on Thursday said he would give details of the agenda of the meeting and its recommendations to parliament only after the discussions have ended.
