Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) has launched a report titled, "And That’s How I Survived Being Killed": Testimonies of Human Rights Abuses from Uganda’s Sexual and Gender Minorities.
The report is intended to document the many forms of persecution that LGBT identifying individuals in Uganda face. In this report, based on first-hand testimonies, Sexual Minorities Uganda documented from May 2014 until December 2015 the physical threats, violent attacks, torture, arrest, blackmail, non-physical threats, press intrusion, state prosecution, termination of employment, loss of physical property, harassment, eviction, mob justice, and family banishment that are all too often apart of the lived experience for sexual and gender minorities in Uganda. This report has documented 264 verified cases of persecutions of LGBT individuals based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Of the 264 cases documented in this report 48 involved acts of violence, including 35 cases involving physical threats or violent attacks, and 13 instances of torture by the state. The largest proportion of documented cases involved intimidation, with 84 cases, while 73 involved loss of property (including loss of employment, physical property, and eviction), and 59 involved social exclusion (including discrimination when accessing healthcare, community discrimination, and family banishment) — all of which the Ugandan government has failed to investigate. THE RESULT:
Many Ugandans have fled the country as a result of these acts persecution. There is very little respite on a case by case and direct basis. Some make their way to overseas countries which is very difficult to do and others, who have no money or ability to travel and receive visas make their way across borders to become refugees, seeking resettlement by UNHCR. At African HRC we provide direct case monitoring and case assistance for refugees. We also provide direct cash for relocation to safe houses, for food, and medical attention, as needed. At this time we are trying to support several refugees who receive only one non nourishing meal a day, and some go without food for several days. At the time of writing this out most urgent need - we are trying to relocate 8 refugees into safe shelter and for 6 who have no food. OUR CURRENT DIRECT FUNDING PLEA can be found HERE.
We are not funded by government and nor are there any grants for direct assistance such as we provide.
For the full report please visit https://sexualminoritiesuganda.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/And-Thats-How-I-Survived_Report_Final.pdf.
