Witchhunt

---

Can you have religion without hate?

The church, here in Uganda, has taken another big step towards increasing the amount of hate in the world. There is a witch hunt going on now for gay people. That's right - in a country where people die daily of HIV, malnutrition and malaria, people are rising up to combat the horrible evil of homosexuality. This country can't rise up as a unified population to fight corruption, which affects them on a daily basis and keeps them from getting badly needed services, and it can't train teachers. However, it can mobilize people in an instant to hunt down gay people, who are having no effect whatsoever on their lives.

Maybe if there were more trained teachers in this country, you wouldn't get idiotic responses like this to a newspaper article that asked how to identify gay people:

John Mayanja, 26, Businessman
If I see a man acting like a woman and a woman taking up an appearance of a man, I would imagine they are gay. If a man applies make-up and is so serious about the way they look, then they must be up to something unusual. In most cases you will find that such a man hates women and is never interested in talking about them. Even gay women rarely have time for men. Children should be educated against this act from home and society should emphasize our culture because it does not allow homosexuality.

Amer Jingo, 21, Sales and Marketing
The best way to identify a homosexual is if they do not have interest in women whatsoever. Instead of seeing him date a woman, he is mostly with men for all the time you know him. Gays are so fussy about fashion and always want to be on top as far as good looks are concerned. In the case of lesbians, you will find women who are overly jealous about fellow women and they even restrain them from interacting with fellow women. This subject of homosexuality and lesbianism is taking root and can only be controlled if a strong law is passed by government.

Sarah Nakiwolo, 22, Student
What I know is that men who are gay tend to like all the fancy things that are normally appreciated by women. For example they will want to always treat their hair, apply make-up and act like women by pulling at their blouses (shirts) and jeans, which are normally tight. They also tend to gesture around like women by folding their hands, you know. Then for women, they will behave like men. They wear men’s clothes a lot and would rather cut their hair to appear like men and do not fuss about make up. God made sex for man and woman, period. It will be hard to stop gay acts unless government comes out with a strict law.

Grace Sebuliba, 20, Musician
A gay’s behaviour will always change from his usual self in order to make a different impression of themselves to others. You will find a homosexual applying powder on their face like a woman; they walk like women and enjoy wearing lots of make-up. A homosexual will be so jealous about his fellow man and so will a lesbian be about another woman. So do not wonder why. In order to stop the spread of gay acts, a strict law from Parliament must be passed, counselling of gay activists should be encouraged and single-sex schools stopped.

Labartin Mwima, 21, Designer
It is quite easy to identify someone who is gay. The thing about a homosexual or a lesbian is that in the case of a man, he will be acting like a woman and vice-versa. A gay man may try to change his character traits and voice in order to be a woman. One other thing is that people with the gay orientation are shy and tend to avoid eye-contact. About controlling the spread of homosexuality and lesbianism in Uganda, the financial welfare of people must be improved first.

Janet Namugga, 24, Artiste
Gay women are not only jealous and over protective of fellow women but they tend to touch each other a lot even in public. It is not uncommon that they share gifts a lot and you will find that they are not interested in men, so they are normally in the company of fellow women. Gay men normally wear those feminine things like strong perfumes, make-up, heavy jewellery and very bright colours. I think the best way to control the spread of homosexuality and lesbianism in our society is by educating the public about the negatives.

I think this one is my favorite:

Suzan Idimu, Sales Marketer
You can tell that someone is gay through the way they dress. They always want to want to stand out from the crowd; be noticed and get all the compliments. Such people also behave very nicely to people especially in public. They do not want to be rude. I believe sensitising and letting people know that such acts do not conform to our African cultures and values is important. They can also be exposed in a bid to scare off those who have not started the habit.

Yep, God forbid people should start the habit of “behaving very nicely to people, especially in public.” Or that they should “not want to be rude.” These acts certainly don't “conform to our African culture and values.”

There are daily articles now about public figures who have been “exposed,” and ways to spot “homos.”

If people want a witch hunt, I would suggest they go after the people who are actually practising witchcraft. A growing trend here, which is attracting FAR less attention, is the ritual of burying an infant, often alive, below the walls of new homes being built to bring prosperity to the new owner. Is it just me, or does this not seem like a much bigger issue than all those gay people traipsing around in makeup, facepowder and bright-coloured “blouses?”

---