Police foils Uganda Gay Pride event

Pride pungent proceedings: Pride parades are held all over the world and are an opportunity for the LGBTI community to come together and raise awareness of their rights...

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Pride pungent proceedings: Pride parades are held all over the world and are an opportunity for the LGBTI community to come together and raise awareness of their rights — and Uganda has been no different.(COURTESY PHOTO)

Police have raided Uganda’s fifth lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community annual Pride festival that organised Thursday evening at Club Venom in Kampala.

The LGBTI community allege to have organised this festival to spotlight their Mr and Miss Pride pageant however, Police reports that the gathering was a gay wedding, citing unlawful assembly.

Source says more than 10 ‪LGBTI Ugandans have been detained including Uganda Gay Rights activist, Dr. Frank Mugisha. These are being taken to Kabalagala Police station.

According to a 12th July, 2016 press statement from the Pride 2016 Committee, this year’s Pride event was themed “Standing Together”, paying special homage to the countries that have supported Ugandan LGBTI refugees in their pursuit for asylum especially Kenya.

The celebrations were intended to run for four days, a lesbian and bisexual night on 3rd August, the Mr and Miss Pride pageant on 4th August, a community outreach on 5th August, the annual Pride parade on 6th August and the traditional wrap up party on 7th August, 2016.

Most of the 200 people attending the pride event were allowed to leave the club, according to Adrian Jjuuko of the legal aid group Human Rights Awareness and Promotion Forum (HRAPF).

The group claims that they made security a priority to avoid and clashes with security agencies. “We have also involved the Uganda Police Force to avoid any loggerhead situations and they have assured us of their cooperation. Everyone can now be a part of Pride with the assurance that their safety is one of our top priorities” Shawn Mugisha , the security in charge on the Pride 2016  committee noted.

The inaugural gay pride march was held in the city of Entebbe, some 20 miles south of the capital Kampala, in 2012.

That was just about the same season the anti-homosexuality bill was tabled.

Pride parades are held all over the world and are an opportunity for the LGBTI community to come together and raise awareness of their rights.

See Video: Proceedings Before Police Crushed In

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