Uganda: Religious leaders, government hold 'thanksgiving' service for harsh new anti-gay law
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda has launched fresh condemnation of gays, saying they deserve punishment because homosexuality "is criminal and it is so cruel."
Museveni, who last month signed a bill strengthening criminal penalties against homosexuals, said Monday that he is "now mobilizing to fight" Western gays he accuses of promoting homosexuality in Africa.
Museveni spoke at a "thanksgiving service" organized by a coalition of Ugandan religious leaders and government officials who said the president deserves credit for defying Western pressure.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Thousands of Ugandans attended the raucous event in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, many of them schoolchildren who sang and danced to anti-gay tunes that also railed against the West.
Some European countries and the U.S. have cut, delayed or reviewed aid to Uganda over the law.