Box Turtle Bulletin

Don Schmierer On Uganda: “What, Me Worry?”

L-R: Unidentified woman, American holocaust revisionist Scott Lively, International Healing Foundation's Caleb Brundidge, Exodus International boardmember Don Schmierer, Family Life Network (Uganda)'s Stephen Langa, at the time of the March 2009 anti-gay conference in Uganda.

After more than nine months of controversy over Exodus International boardmember Don Schmierer’s participation in a virulently anti-gay conference in Kampala last March, he has finally deigned to speak up. And his defense is rather novel, something you might call the “Alfred E. Newman” defense. In a statement posted on Exodus International’s blog, Schmierer pretends that he had no idea that there was any problem with that conference until he was mentioned by Rachel Maddow:

Never in a million years did I expect to see my face on MSNBC. But there I was, plain as day – white hair, tanned wrinkles, looking every bit the grandfather I am- in a photo posted on Rachel Maddow\’s show last night. Unbeknownst to me, she had decided to discuss a conference I spoke at in Uganda several months ago.

Remember, this is after nine months of outcry over the outcome of this conference, months of his own organization’s prevarications, half-hearted defenses, and finally — finally! — a letter. Even after all that, it wasn’t until just this past Tuesday that he decided that maybe it was time to add his signature to the letter more than two weeks after it was originally issued. (Exodus vice president Randy Thomas explains that Schmierer’s late signature was due to the fact that he was gallivanting elsewhere around the world with his “redemptive” message — and we all know where that’s gotten us.) But it wasn’t until his mug showed up on national television did he decide it was finally time to make a statement.

No worries.

This international experience, however, turned out to be a bit different. For starters, I didn\’t know much about the conference when I agreed to speak there. At first I thought I was the only speaker and was surprised to hear that Caleb Lee Brundidge of the International Healing Foundation and Dr. Scott Lively of Defend the Family International would be speaking as well. I disagree with several of their respective organization\’s beliefs about this issue and have found several comments to be inflammatory. In retrospect, my decision to speak there might have been different, but one thing I did know was that Ugandans needed to hear a redemptive, compassionate view of this issue. So I set off to do my best in providing it. When my portion of the conference was over, a Ugandan gay bishop complimented me and remarked with gratitude that I “really understood” the gay community as well as the true nature of this issue.

I’m glad he got his “redemptive” message across. But there’s a problem with this statement. On February 27, the week before the conference took place, and the just shortly after we first learned about the conference, BTB’s Timothy Kincaid wrote to Alan Chambers to warn him about the conference:

On Friday, February 27, we inquired to be certain that Alan Chambers, president of Exodus International, was aware of the character and history of those participating at the Uganda anti-gay conference. Alan\’s response was off the record. But because he responded we know he received our email and was therefore aware of the list of presenters and of our concerns.

So on Monday we asked him to let us know if he and the Exodus leadership would develop a position on Don Schmierer\’s activities in Uganda.

We never heard back and the rest is a very well-documented history.

So what does this mean? Did Alan Chambers not pass on our concerns to Don Schmierer? If so, that would suggest that he does not maintain very good communications with his own board. But if the opposite is true, then Schmierer should have been warned about what he was up against and chose to go ahead anyway. Either way, this cop-out doesn’t just wash.

Schmierer concludes with what ought to be the main message, instead of his self-serving defense. He says:

What is true, however, and worth all the news media coverage possible, is the tragic nature of and heartbreaking potential this bill holds. I remember the gay bishop I spoke with and am deeply concerned that if this legislation were to go into effect, he would be in danger. I am grieved that the church and social workers I met may now be faced with the gut-wrenching decision of whether or not to turn in a gay friend or loved one. It should not be so. That is why I have signed on to the letter below in speaking out against this legislation. Please join me, and Rachel Maddow by extension, in voicing your concern over this bill.

Again, the concern is not so much over LGBT people (unless he knows someone personally who swallows Schmierer’s ex-gay line), but over church and social workers who may face a “gut-wrenching decision.” Fine. We’ll take whatever we can get. They say “better late than never,” but now I’m not so optimistic.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Statement from International Healing Foundation Regarding Uganda

There’s not much there, but we’ve been provided a copy of the full statement from Richard Cohen’s International Healing Foundation regarding Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act. The current legislation is a direct aftermath of a three-day conference put on last March by three American anti-gay activists. One of them was Caleb Lee Brundidge, who is a counselor with the International Healing Foundation, and an minister with Phoenix-based Extreme Prophetic.

We first learned of the statement form Rachel Maddow’s program, where she read just two short sentences of the statement. And for good reason. That was the only part of the statement that was relevant, and it was barely so. The rest is nothing but salesmanship, much like the IHF’s web site. The PDF of their statement is here (PDF: 116KB/1 page). It says:

The mission of the International Healing Foundation is to provide counseling for those who experience unwanted same-sex attractions (SSA), including their family members, and to educate all people about the facts of homosexuality—1) no one is born this way, 2) no one chooses to have SSA, and 3) that changing from homosexual to heterosexual is possible.

We condemn any harsh and extreme punishment of persons who identify as homosexual or engage in homosexual behavior. Instead, we advocate education and counseling for those who experience unwanted SSA. We believe that all persons should have equal access to information about the facts of homosexuality—that no one is born this way, no one chooses to have SSA, and that change is possible.

So the questions remain. What is “harsh and extreme punishment”? The death penalty? Lifetime imprisonment? Any imprisonment? And what do they advocate for those who don\’t have unwanted “Same-Sex Attraction”?

This is the same sort of non-statement statement that we’ve come to expect from those who can’t find the simple and direct words to say that criminalizing an entire group of people to death is wrong.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Seven Mountains Theology At the Heart of Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill

Yesterday, Warren Throckmorton began delving into the “Seven Mountains” theology that has surfaced in investigations into American Evangelical ties to the current Anti-Homosexuality Act which has been put before Uganda’s Parliament. Today, Bruce Wilson, of the New Apostolic Reformation Research Group, has published a major exposé on extensive ties between those behind Uganda’s latest draconian proposal and American Evangelicals. Again, “Seven Mountains” theology appears to be at the core.

According to news reports, the Anti-Homosexuality Act was tabled before Parliament on October 14, but that wasn’t the first time discussions surrounding the proposal occurred in the chamber. A transcript of Parliamentary proceedings from April 29, have come to light which show MP David Bahati first introducing the bill before Parliament. This is likely to have been similar to the draft dated April 20, 2009 that we obtained in September. (The current bill is dated September 25.) According to the Parliamentary transcript, the Speaker noted several distinguished visitors in the gallery before turning the floor over to MP Bahati:

Let us hear from hon. Bahati. In connection with the motion he is moving, we have in the gallery Apostle Julius Peter Oyet, Vice-President of the Born Again Federation; Pastor Dr Martin Sempa of the Family Policy Centre; Stephen Langa, Family Life Network; hon. Godfrey Nyakaana; the Mayor of Kampala City Council; Julius, a young boy who was sodomised, and his mother. His story has been in the press. They are all here in the gallery. Please, let us deal with them so that they can leave. There is also George Oundo who came out to speak against homosexuality. Please, let us balance the public good and our good since all of them are important. We shall do them all very quickly. Hon. Bahati.

For longtime BTB readers, many of these names are familiar. Stephen Langa organized the anti-gay conference in Kampala in March featuring three American Anti-Gay activists which ultimately kicked off this latest round of anti-gay vigilantism and, eventually, this bill. Martin Ssempa has enjoyed close ties with many American Evangelicals, most notably Saddleback Pastor Rick Warren. Ssempa has used the latest anti-gay furor to exact revenge against rival pastors by accusing them of homosexuality. Those accusations were unfounded, and Ssempa himself is the subject of a police investigation for filing false reports. George Oundo is the unstable so-called “ex-gay” who participated in several acts of vigilantism in the media.

"Apostle" Julius Oyet

But one name we haven’t paid much attention to — and should — is that of the self-designated “Apostle” Julius Peter Oyet. He’s vice-president of the Born Again Federation, and umbrella group of some 10,000 Ugandan Pentecostal churches. He is also head of Lifeline Ministries. According to Throckmorton and Wilson, Oyet has gained favor and influence with Uganda President Yoweri Museveni for going to Northern Uganda and praying over territory once controlled by the rebel Lord\’s Resistance Army. His prayers reportedly resulted in the “miraculous” return of hundreds of child soldiers abducted by the LRA, as well as other fantastic stories of miraculous healings, cleansing of poisoned rivers, casting out demons, and the like.

Oyet is an adherent to “Seven Mountains” theology, a Dominionist theology that calls upon Christians to “establish the Kingdom of God on earth” by claiming possession to “the Seven Mountains of Culture namely: Business, Government, Religion, Family, Media, Education and Entertainment.”  Warren Throckmorton explains:

This viewpoint seems to be quite popular among those who follow C. Peter Wagner\’s New Apostolic Reformation. Wagner is the Presiding Apostle for the International Council of Apostles, a subsidiary of Global Harvest Ministries which admits new apostles by invitation only.

Wagner\’s 2008 book Dominion: How Kingdom Action Can Change the World, is described by the publisher as an exploration of “the biblical roots of dominion theology.” According to Wagner, the task of the church is less about individual salvation and more about taking dominion over the culture by reclaiming seven domains: family, business, arts & entertainment, government, media, education, and religion.

Perhaps not so coincidentally, Caleb Lee Brundidge, one of the speakers at that anti-gay conference at Kampala last march, is a member of a group called Extreme Prophetic, which also adheres to Seven Mountains theology.

Bruce Wilson’s report at Talk to Action takes up the thread from there:

Some observers have wondered if Purpose Driven Life author and mega-evangelist Rick Warren has had a role in the globally controversial bill, especially because of Warren’s close association with Ugandan anti-gay activist Martin Ssempa and, more broadly, because Warren has refused to denounce the anti-gay bill.

To little notice, a charismatic network overseen by Warren’s doctoral dissertation advisor, C. Peter Wagner, has played a major role in politically organizing and inspiring the Ugandan legislators who have spearheaded the anti-gay bill.

Wagner is the Convening Apostle in a movement of charismatic networks which has extended its reach from the United States to Uganda, and worldwide. Under its umbrella of authority are virulently anti-gay apostles in the United States and Uganda including Lou Engle of TheCall, who led thousands of young people in a twelve hour November 1, 2008 stadium rally in support of California’s anti-gay marriage Proposition Eight.

The San Diego event closed with Engle, a member of Wagner’s inner circle of “prophets,” calling for Christian martyrs. Peter Wagner heads the New Apostolic Reformation, which he openly touts as an effort to take Christian dominion over the globe by putting “born again” believers around the world under the authority of these apostles and prophets.

Both C. Peter Wagner and Rick Warren want to transform the world, and both have proclaimed the advent of a second Reformation. Wagner calls it the New Apostolic Reformation, while for Rick Warren this is a “purpose driven” effort powered by Warren’s global P.E.A.C.E. Plan. In Uganda both visions for societal transformation appear to include the categorical elimination of homosexuality – by any means.

The word “transform” is key. Wilson identifies Julius Oyet as a one of Wagner’s Apostles, and is featured in one of the movement’s Transformations series of video documentaries. Wilson says these videos “depict cities and even whole nations transformed to earthly utopias when charismatic Christians take control of societal structures and government.” The “Transformations” ideas promoted these videos have spawned Transformation organizations around the world, including the International Transformation Network

Oyet is also identified as being the head of the Uganda division of the College of Prayer International. BTB readers may recall from last month that MP David Bahati, who introduced the Anti-Homosexualty Act into Parliament, and MP Benson Obua-Ogwa, identified as one of the bill’s cosponsors, are core members of the College of Prayer International’s Uganda branch. They were appointed as two of eight MP\’s to serve on the Christian “servant leadership team” in Parliament for three years.

Some parts of Wilson’s report covers some of the same ground that we’ve reported, but his well-researched report goes much deeper than anyone has been able to accomplish so far. He does an excellent job of not only tying it all together, but demonstrating how Seven Mountains theology works, as adherents seek to infiltrate the seven spheres of cultural influence — particularly the governmental sphere. He also documents the close ties that these groups have with the President and First Lady of Uganda. For example:

A March 8th, 2007 news release, hosted on the official web site of Republic of Uganda State House, reveals the extent to which the Transformations model is being integrated into Ugandan government policy:

“President Yoweri Museveni and his wife Mrs. Janet Museveni today hosted at State House, Nakasero 2 officials of California based Harvest Evangelism. Founder and President of Harvest Evangelism Mr. Ed Silvoso was accompanied by Mr. Graham Power.” According to the release, the Musevenis discussed with Silvoso and Power “issues pertaining to investment opportunities in the country particularly road construction and the development of infrastructure.”

Ed Silvoso is an apostle in C. Peter Wagner’s International Coalition of Apostles and is CEO of the International Transformation Network (ITN). Janet Museveni has spoken at several Transformation conferences around the world including one hosted by Silvoso’s Argentina-based ministry.

So now we see how Peter Wagner’s “Seven Mountain” theology is having a very real impact in Uganda. And with Rick Warren as Wagner’s protegé, Warren’s refusal to take a stand on the impending disaster in Uganda is starting to make sense. One would think that denouncing such a draconian attempt at criminalization would be easy to denounce, but Warren can’t find it in his heart to do so.

The more we look at the ties between American Evangelicals and Uganda’s political leadership, the more we see the true nature of what the American Evangelical movement has in store for LGBT people if they get their way. One Uganda pastor called the proposal “genocide.” That’s an extreme word describing an extreme situation. But the more we learn, the more it looks like it’s not hyperbole after all. This is real.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Archbishop of Canterbury In “Private Talks”; Ugandan Pastor Calls “Kill Gays” Bill “Genocide”

There are two developments reported today on the Anglican Church’s response to the draconian Anti-Homosexuality Act that is now before Uganda’s Parliament. First, The Times of London‘s religion correspondent Ruth Gledhill reports that the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Rowan Williams, who is head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, is in private “intensive” talks with leaders of the Ugandan Anglican Church. Rowans has been severely criticized for his silence, but Gledhill reports:

But there is method in his silence. Today, Lambeth Palace told me: ‘It has been made clear to us, as indeed to others, that attempts to publicly influence either the local church or political opinion in Uganda would be divisive and counter productive. Our contacts, at both national and diocesan level, with the local church will therefore remain intensive but private.’

In fact, we can take for granted that Dr Williams is against the draconian new law. But speaking out publicly to this effect could indeed, as he says, have the opposite effect to that intended. It would almost certainly be seen as white-led colonialism of the worst possible kind, as a misguided attempt to impose western liberal values upon traditional African culture.

Canon Gideon Byamugisha

One Ugandan Anglican pastor however is not so timid about labeling the bill for what it is:

Canon Gideon Byamugisha said the bill, which recommends the death penalty for anyone repeatedly convicted of having gay sex and prison sentences for those who fail to report homosexual activity to the police, would breed violence and intolerance through all levels of society.

“I believe that this bill [if passed into law] will be state-legislated genocide against a specific community of Ugandans, however few they may be,” he said.

Canon Byamugisha said that gay people were being used as scapegoats for Uganda’s social problems, and that politicians were using LGBT people as political fodder for the upcoming 2011 elections. (We’ve also discussed that dynamic here.) Canon Byamugisha elaborates:

“They [politicians] are exploiting the traditional and cultural abhorrence to same-sex relationships to their advantage. They know that if they criminalise homosexuals, homosexual tendencies and homosexual acts, they stand a better chance of winning votes from the majority of religious followers and leaders, because most of us may not be able to distinguish what may be considered ‘unacceptable’, from the point of view of religious and cultural belief and opinion, from what is ‘criminal’, from the point of state law that is meant to keep peace, order and justice,” he said.

“What makes this proposed law truly distasteful is the amount and level of violence that is being proposed against suspected, rumoured and known individuals who are gay, and their families and community leaders in their places of worship, residence, education, work, business and entertainment.”

He added: “When you say that parents of homosexual children, and that pastors and counsellors who extend spiritual guidance and psycho-social support to homosexuals, will be regarded as ‘accomplices’ in promoting and abetting homosexuality if they don’t report them to police, then you take the law a bit too far.”

April 19, 2009 edition of Uganda's Red Pepper (Scans via GayUganda. Names and faces obscured by Box Turtle Bulletin. Click to enlarge).

As we have already reported, there was already one full-scale public vigilante campaign waged in public media last April against LGBT people. The Red Pepper published names and photos of those accused of being gay, an act which resulted in several arrests and blackmail attempts. Others were denounced in radio and television, as rival pastors took revenge on one another through accusations of homosexuality. It is feared that if the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act becomes law, it will unleash a new round of vigilantism and extra-judicial torture.

Canon Byamugisha’s courageous stand is nothing new.After the death of his first wife of AIDS in 1990, he discovered he was HIV-positive. Two years later he became the first practicing African priest to publicly declare his HIV status, which was a bold step in a continent in which HIV/AIDS carries an enormous stigma. His has since become a vigorous campaigner on behalf of those living with AIDS. n 2003 he established the Friends of Canon Gideon Foundation to end the stigma of HIV/AIDS, provide education for safe sex practices, improve access to treatment, and support children who have lost parents to the disease. He is canon for two cathedrals, in Uganda and Zambia. This year he was awarded the Niwano Peace Prize for his work.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Anti-Gay Bill Likely To Pass As Oil Surpasses Donors For Influence In Uganda

We’ve noted some of the political factors, including the influence of the American anti-gay right, behind Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act which is now before Parliament. We’ve also noted condemnations from AIDS services organizations, Canada, and Britain, as well as a warning from Sweden that passage of the draconian law will lead to a reduction of foreign aid. These warnings and condemnations however have been met with defiance from Ugandan governmental officials.

Reuters now suggests that passage of the bill is almost assured due to two factors. The first, we’ve already mentioned, is the fact that 2011 is an election year, and no Member of Parliament can be seen as being supportive of LGBT causes and hope to survive the election. The second factor — the one that contributes directly to a decline in donor influence — is oil. Foreign aid currently makes up about a third of Uganda’s budget, but with the 2006 discovery of large oil deposits along Uganda’s western border, Uganda is quickly moving to become a major oil producer. The discovery has already touched off an international scramble by oil explorers and producers to gain a foothold in the Lake Albert basin. Observers estimate that once the oil fields reach full production, some $2 billion per year could flood Uganda’s coffers based on today’s prices, which would be more than double the amount that Uganda currently receives in foreign aid.

This may help explain the defiance with which Minister of Ethics and Integrity James Nsaba Buturo dismissed warnings from Sweden over cuts to foreign aid. He told reporters at a press conference Wednesday, “If one chooses to withdraw their aid, they are free because Ugandans do not want to engage in  anal sex. We do not care.” MP David Bahati, primary sponsor of the bill, is equally defiant. “We cannot exchange our dignity for money,” he said.

Jack Kimball at Reuters suggests that while the bill is sure to pass, its final form is still unknown:

Likely changes may include modifying the death penalty to life imprisonment, altering clauses nullifying international treaties, conventions and protocols that contradict the act, and removing a section about extradition.

Even if these changes are made, the scope of the bill is still outrageous: lifetime imprisonment for homosexuality, abolition of free speech on behalf of LGBT people (seven year’s imprisonment), and the criminalization of failure to report LGBT people to police (three year’s imprisonment).

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Uganda Responds To International Furor Over “Kill Gays” Bill

(Update: The Daily Monitor has more details on Nsaba Buturo’s statement at the government Media Centre. See below for details)

James Nsaba Buturo, Uganda’s Minister for Ethics and Integrity, has issued a statement through the Ugandan government’s official Media Centre addressing criticisms over the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act. This is the bill that provides the death penalty for conviction of homosexuality under certain circumstances, provides a lifetime imprisonment for all other cases, and a seven year sentence for “attempted” homosexuality. It also criminalizes free speech on behalf of LGBT citizens (seven year’s imprisonment) and criminalizes all acquaintance of gay people (failure to report gays to police within 24 hours of learning someone is gay brings a three year prison sentence). Sweden announced that they intend to cut aid to Uganda should this bill go forward. Nsaba Buturo responds:

There is a Bill in Parliament known as the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. This subject is causing a great deal of interest around the world. The people of Uganda believe that practicing anal sex at the expense of heterosexual sex is not a normal practice. Ugandans know or believe that homosexuality involves practices that are dangerous and high risk to the human body which is designed for heterosexual functions. Ugandans also believe that anal sexual intercourse, foreign objects used in sexual intercourse and promiscuity do not deserve to be defended at all. Having said that, it is clear to many of us that the over reaction so far is not surprising to us. Uganda accepts that in some countries it is normal practice for men to sleep with men and women with women. It is often defended that imperatives of human rights defend this practice. We do not believe so in Uganda. Majority of Ugandans hate to see the promotion of illegalities that they consider as dysfunctional, abnormal and unhealthy.

Ever since the Bill on Homosexuality was presented in Parliament, there have been various reactions as well as over-reactions from countries which are annoyed at our independence to enact our Laws. Consequently, we hear they are threatening to take action against Uganda. It is revealing that support to Uganda literally translated means that it is on condition that Uganda should do the bidding of givers of such support regardless of what Ugandans themselves think. It is also revealing that support which would benefit countless number of orphans, children and mothers can be withdrawn simply because Government is protecting its citizens against vices such as homosexuality. Government has been clear about this matter that homosexuality or homosexual practices will not be promoted, encouraged and recommended to the people of Uganda.

Finally, on the issue of the Bill, those who are promising threats to the people of Uganda need to be helped to understand that the Bill is going through the normal democratic process of debate. The Bill is not the final document that will become Law. If there is belief that threats will influence Parliament to debate against the wishes of Uganda, those responsible for such threats should forget. We should all wait to see how Members of Parliament will acquit themselves over this matter.

It’s difficult to know how to read this statement. It is certainly a vigorous defense of Uganda’s willingness to do whatever they want against a reviled minority. But it also hints at changes in the proposed law. Whether that comes to pass is uncertain. But one thing we do know is this: they are certainly feeling the heat. The UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy on AIDS in Africa, Elizabeth Mataka, was in Kampala to attend events commemorating World AIDS Day. While there, she reportedly met on Monday with MP David Bahati, the primary sponsor of the Anti-Homosexuality Act, to voice the UN’s concerns over the bill’s effects on anti-AIDS efforts. She was also expected to meet with President Yoweri Museveni.

James Nsaba Buturo speaking at the government Media Centre (Geoffrey Sseruyange/Daily Monitor)

Update: The Daily Monitor has a story about remarks Nsabe Buturo made at the government Media Centre yesterday. In response to Sweeden’s threat to withhold aid to Uganda if the bill passes, Buturo said:

“Homosexuality will not be promoted, encouraged or supported in Uganda,” Mr Buturo added.

Mr Buturo told journalists at the Uganda Media Centre in Kampala that: “We should remind them (the donors) that there is integrity to be defended and threats are not the way to go. If one chooses to withdraw their aid, they are free because Ugandans do not want to engage in  anal sex. We do not care.”

…As Mr Buturo was castigating donors, the Uganda Human Rights Commission announced that it will scrutinise the Bill and make recommendations before it is debated. Commission Chairman, Mr Med Kaggwa, said the exercise will help establish whether the Bill, which has been criticised   by some rights groups, violates human rights.

“What I can say is that we are human rights defenders and if they (gays) come and complain of discrimination we shall handle their cases,” he said without divulging details.

Buturo also complained of foreign aid doners publicly denouncing the Anti-Homosexuality Act. He believes that such complaints should be made in private.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

International Healing Foundation Issues Statement On Uganda

Rachel Maddow finally got a statement from Richard Cohen’s International Healing Foundation about Uganda’s proposed death penalty for LGBT people under certain circumstances:

L-R: Unidentified woman, American holocaust revisionist Scott Lively, International Healing Foundation's Caleb Brundidge, Exodus International boardmember Don Schmierer, Family Life Network (Uganda)'s Stephen Langa, at the time of the March 2009 anti-gay conference in Uganda.

Caleb Lee Brundidge was one of three American anti-gay activists participating at a conference in Kampala last march which led to the current crisis there for LGBT people. Other American anti-gay activists participating were Holocaust revisionist Scott Lively and Exodus International board member Don Schmierer. Rachel also read portions of a statement from Scott Lively which we already covered last Saturday. Don Schmierer belatedly signed on to the November 16 letter from Exodus condemning the Ugandan legislation. His signature was appended just this past Tuesday.

The portion of IHF’s statement that Rachel Maddow read was brief:

We condemn any harsh and extreme punishment of persons who identify as homosexual or who engage in homosexual behavior. Instead, we advocate education and counseling for those with unwanted Same-Sex Attraction.

We don’t know whether this is the entire statement or not, as it can be found nowhere on the International Healing Foundation’s web site. You can find plenty of sales clutter, but no statement.

What we do have is a typically vague non-statement. What is “harsh and extreme punishment”? The death penalty? Lifetime imprisonment? Any imprisonment? And what do they advocate for those who don’t have unwanted “Same-Sex Attraction”? (Note the capitalization; it’s Richard Cohen’s terminology, often abbreviated as SSA, to indicate that he believes that homosexuality is a mental illness.) What they do advocate is left unclear.

If the International Healing Foundation is at all familiar, it is chiefly because of Richard Cohen’s unorthodox methods to “cure” homosexuality, which include “touch” or “holding” therapy. On March 23, 2002, Richard Cohen was permanently expelled from the American Counseling Association for multiple ethical violations. He now practices as an unregulated “coach.”

Caleb Lee Brundidge is also associated with Extreme Prophetic in Phoenix, AZ. Extreme Prophetic refused to condemn the proposed Ugandan legislation, saying “As a ministry we do not have an official opinion on political policies.” Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton notes the inconsistency behind that statement, since Extreme Prophetic’s stated mission is to “take over spheres and adminstrate them for the glory of God.” Among those spheres of influence is the political sphere. Extreme Prophetic’s own theology makes a mockery of their statement.

Brundidge himself has maintained complete silence.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Going Rove In Uganda

American political strategist and Bush Administration adviser Karl Rove was famous for his use of wedge politics to drive voters to conservative causes. He became so famous for it that his name became an adjective to describe that style of campaigning: Rovian. If you want to turn out voters to get behind your cause, make sure there’s something for them to vote against, a wedge that pits one segment of voters against their own better judgment. And nothing is wedgier than gays. A rash of anti-gay marriage amendments in 2004 have long been regarded, rightly or wrongly, as being part of a successful strategy to put Bush over the top in key battleground states.

We may call it Rovian politics, but that doesn’t mean Karl Rove invented it. It has been a staple of political campaigns the world over for centuries. Ugandan political observers detect what we would call Rovian politics at play with the Anti-Homosexuality Act that was introduced in Parliament last month. Anne Mugisha, of the Forum for Democratic Change, observes that “Uganda is in fact on the verge of a political crisis created by the conflict of an authoritarian police state trying to pass for a quasi modern democracy.” And whenever there’s a political crisis, leaders need a convenient scapegoat to provide a distraction from the real problems facing a country, and American anti-gay activists were more than happy to point the way.

The current strongman, President Yoweri Museveni, has won accolades as a reformer for his 1995 Constitution that requires elections every five years. Museveni has also been behind numerous moves to subvert and change that same constitution (including the removal of its mandated term limits), and this has allowed him to retain the power that he has held since overthrowing his predecessor in a 1986 civil war. But despite his authoritarian credentials, his reputation as a reformer has somehow remained intact. And to keep it that way he has to have elections every five years — 2011 will be another election year — and he has no intention of losing even if a few gay people have to be put to death in the process.

The elections are two years out, but observers note that Uganda’s Parliament is already busying itself with the kind of populist measures to burnish the government’s reputation that voters have come to expect in advance of national elections. But Uganda’s notorious corruption can’t be covered over by another round of popular land reform measures. Wedge politics, according to observers, are also re-appearing after lying dormant since the last elections in 2006, and political leaders are turning to new scapegoats to prop up their popularity. 

At a forum held in Makerere University two weeks ago, Law Professor Sylvia Tamale observed that gays make a great scapegoat. “Anyone who cares to read history books,” she remarked,  “knows very well that in times of crisis, when people at the locus of power are feeling vulnerable and their power is being threatened, they will turn against the weaker groups in society.” She reiterated that in her column published on November 3 in the government opposition paper The Daily Monitor:

Politicians find that homosexuals are a great scapegoat or red herring to divert attention to more pressing issues that affect the ordinary Ugandan such as unemployment, corruption, poor health facilities, reform of electoral laws and so forth. If we are to be absolutely honest with ourselves, we should ask whether there are not more pressing issues of moral violation in other areas such as domestic violence, torture and corruption. None of these areas have specific laws outlawing their practice. That is where the likes of Hon. (David) Bahati (chief sponsor of the Anti-Homosexuality Act) should expend their energies.

Writing for tomorrow’s edition of The Daily Monitor, Augustine Rizindana observes that Museveni’s gay bashing isn’t meant to solve any actual problems which Uganda faces, but is instead a blatant attempt to distract voters from endemic corruption and mismanagement that has been hallmarks of his 23-year rule:

Why does the government and Parliament find the Anti-Homosexual Bill more of a priority than the electoral bills and other governance issues? Already homosexuality is a criminal offence as a “crime against nature” in the Penal Code and marriage is defined in the Constitution as between man and woman. The life and death sentences introduced in the new Bill are to impress an external constituency critical for regime survival.

He doesn’t name the “external constituency critical for regime survival” but Anne Mugisha reminds us to look elsewhere for the bigger picture. Wedge politics may be in play here, but that’s not the whole story. It’s not about David Bahati, a member of Museveni’s ruling party who is the chief sponsor of the Anti-Homosexuality bill. And it’s not just about Museveni winning yet another election. She says it goes even further than that:

Hon. Bahati is a sitting duck for the LGBT community because he has become the face of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Uganda after he tabled it and his name will forever be linked to the international outrage that Uganda has attracted for proposing to execute gays and lesbians for what the Bill calls aggravated homosexuality. But rights activists need to focus harder and higher on the real source of his inspiration and not just on the Ugandan President but also the fundamentalist interests in the US that sponsor radical right wing idealism in our country.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Sweden responds to Uganda’s proposed “Kill Gays” bill

Sweden may cut back their development assistance to Uganda if the draconian new anti-homosexuality bill passes.

From Radio Sweden

Speaking to Swedish Radio news, development minister Gunilla Carlsson says that she thinks the new law is “appalling”.

“I’m doubly disappointed”, she says, “partly because Uganda is a country with which we have had long-term relations and where I thought and hoped we had started to share common values and understanding. The law itself is wretched, but it’s also offensive to see how the Ugandans choose to look at how we see things, and the kind of reception we get when we bring up these issues”

In all, Sweden’s response puts about 50 million dollars at risk.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

UK PM Gordon Brown Denounces Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown reportedly met with Uganda President Yoweri Museveni at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) taking place this weekend at Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. According to The Telegraph, Brown met one-on-one with Museveni and denounced the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act which is now before Uganda’s Parliament. No details of the conversation were provided, but an unnamed Downing Street source said in a typically understated British fashion, “The Prime Minister did raise it and you can take it that he was not supportive of the idea.”

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Canada PM To Denounce Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced on Thursday that he will raise the issue of Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) which began yesterday. Transport Minister John Baird made the announcement before Parliament on Thursday:

Transport Minister John Baird made the announcement today in Question Period in answer to demands by NDP MP Bill Siksay that the Prime Minister meet “face-to-face” with the Ugandan leader “to help stop this bill.”

“The current legislation before Parliament in Uganda is vile, it\’s abhorrent. It\’s offensive. It offends Canadian values. It offends decency. We strongly condemn that and the Prime Minister will make that strong condemnation as well,” Mr. Baird said.

The Conservative Prime Minister is just one more important voice denouncing Uganda’s proposal to institute the death sentence for LGBT people. On Tuesday, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa Stephen Lewis demanded that discussions of Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act be placed on the agenda.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

United Church of Canada Urges PM To Bring Up Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill at Comonwealth Meeting

The United Church of Canada, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, sent a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, urging the leader to raise the issue of Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting taking place in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. In the letter sent Thursday, acting Executive Minister Patti Talbot wrote:

[I]t is with shock and dismay that we have learned that the Ugandan Parliament is in the process of bringing to law an Anti-Homosexuality Bill that would lead to the criminalization of homosexuality as well as the restriction of free speech and organization in support of the legitimate civil rights of its population.

…Canada\’s own Charter of Rights and Freedoms enshrines the rights of all people regardless of their sexual orientation. As Canadians then, we are responsible for becoming more aware of discrimination against homosexual persons, taking action to ensure that they enjoy their full civil and human rights in society, working to end all forms of discrimination against them, and personally supporting the victims of such discrimination.

In the next few days there is an opportune moment at the summit of Commonwealth leaders for Canada to show leadership in advocating for the protection of the human rights of all people, especially those who are most marginalized, such as gay, lesbian and bisexual people in Uganda. At this summit we urge you to raise these issues and speak firmly against this regressive proposed legislation by the Parliament of Uganda.

The United Church of Canada was formed in 1925 as the result of the merger of Canada’s Presbyterian, Methodist and various congregational churches. The UCoC joins the Anglican Church of Canada in calling on the Canadian government to publicly denounce the bill.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

PEPFAR Coordinator: Don’t Link Uganda Funding To Anti-Homosexuality Act

Newsweek’s Katie Paul spoke to Eric Goosby, chief coordinator for the President’s emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) about Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act instituting the death penalty against gays under certain circumstances. The bill would also outlaw all advocacy and outreach toward and on behalf of the LGBT community, making HIV/AIDS prevention work impossible. Linking to some of BTB’s reporting, Paul asks Goosby about the administrations plans for PEPFAR in Uganda should the legislation go forward:

I’m very concerned about any decision that any country—including our own—would make to target a group that’s in the population, and that’s always been in the population, by excluding them from a service or passes legislation that criminalizes their behavior. Every time you do that, you push the behavior underground. It never works. Rather than minimizing the spread of the virus, it actually amplifies it.

The U.S. policy is trying to work with governments to say exactly that. I think I would do more harm than good by connecting our resources to respond to the epidemic to making them dependent on a behavior that they’re not willing to engage in on their own. My role is to be supportive and helpful to the patients who need these services. It is not to tell a country how to put forward their legislation. But I will engage them in conversation around my concern and knowledge of what this is going to do to that population, and our ability to stop the movement of the virus into the general population.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Follow The Money: The American Connection to Uganda’s Death Sentence For Gays

Jeff Sharlet, author of The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power, appeared on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross, where he laid out yesterday for the first time the pipeline of money and support for those behind the Anti-Homosexuality Act which is now before Uganda’s Parliament.

Before investigating that particular connection, a bit of background on the American secretive group, The Family, is in order. The Family (sometimes known as The Fellowship) was founded in 1935 by Abraham Vereide, a Norwegian immigrant preacher who said that God came to him one night and said that Christianity has been focusing on the wrong people: the poor and the suffering. According to Vereide, God commanded him to become a missionary to the rich and powerful, so that they could unleash blessings to the rest of society through the exercise of theocratic principles that would, in effect, “trickle down” to the masses.

Immediately, Vereide set out to recruit a group of “Key Men” in Seattle, where his new theology was put to the test. Key Men are said to be those who are identified as having been chosen by God to be in positions of power and influence — that they are in those positions not because of their own hard work or fortune, but because they were chosen by God to be there. And in their positions, they are to exercise their power and influence in order to bring out a New Order throughout the world. To give you an idea of some of the influence The Family has in American politics today, Jeff Sharlet told Terry Gross:

And in particular – Joe Pitts has been in the news because of the Stupak-Pitts Amendment – was one of the guys who really helped to bring abortion to the forefront to the group, starting in the late ’70s, and that’s become a concern of a lot of members. And, as you expand outwards over the last couple decades, and you look at the concerns of politicians like Senator Sam Brownback, Senator Jim Inhofe, Senator Tom Coburn, all these guys who are very involved members — you see homosexuality, you see all the culture-war issues taking a place alongside biblical capitalism and this foreign affairs expansionism, and, in fact, merging in The Family’s view into one sort of united world view.

Other key members of The Family that has made news lately are Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) and South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford (R). But it’s not just Republicans. The Family also has key players in the Democratic Party as well, including Reps. Mike McIntyre (D-NC), Heath Shuler (D-NC) and Stupak. (D-MI). Senator Mark Pryor (D-AK) told Sharlet that Jesus didn’t come to take sides, but to take over.

Now on to the Ugandan connection. In his book, Sharlet identifies Uganda President Yoweri Museveni as “The Family’s man in Africa,” who came into The Family when he rose to power in 1986 following a civil war, and he has been a key player in Africa on behalf of The Family ever since.

But the connection between The Family and the currently proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act doesn’t end with that relationship. It goes much deeper. Here is the key part of Sharlet’s interview yesterday, detailing for the first time the specific role that The Family is playing in the proposal to add the death sentence for LGBT people under certain circumstances and to bring an end to all public advocacy on behalf of LGBT citizens in that country:

GROSS: This legislation has just been proposed. It hasn’t been signed into law. So it’s not in effect and it might never be in effect. But it’s on the table. It’s before parliament. So is there a direct connection between The Family and this proposed Anti-Homosexual Legislation in Uganda?

Mr. SHARLET: Well, the legislator that introduces the bill, a guy named David Bahati, is a member of The Family. He appears to be a core member of The Family. He works, he organizes their Uganda National Prayer Breakfast and oversees a African sort of student leadership program designed to create future leaders for Africa, into which The Family has poured millions of dollars working through a very convoluted chain of linkages passing the money over to Uganda.

GROSS: So you’re reporting the story for the first time today, and you found this story – this direct connection between The Family and the proposed legislation by following the money?

Mr. SHARLET: Yes, it’s – I always say that the family is secretive, but not secret. You can go and look at 990s, tax forms and follow the money through these organizations that The Family describe as invisible. But you go and you look. You follow that money. You look at their archives. You do interviews where you can. It’s not so invisible anymore. So that’s how working with some research colleagues we discovered that David Bahati, the man behind this legislation, is really deeply, deeply involved in The Family’s work in Uganda, that the ethics minister of Uganda, Museveni’s kind of right hand man, a guy named Nsaba Buturo, is also helping to organize The Family’s National Prayer Breakfast. And here’s a guy who has been the main force for this Anti-Homosexuality Act in Uganda’s executive office and has been very vocal about what he’s doing, and in a rather extreme and hateful way. But these guys are not so much under the influence of The Family. They are, in Uganda, The Family.

GROSS: So how did you find out that Bahati is directly connected to The Family? You’ve described him as a core member of The Family. And this is the person who introduced the anti-gay legislation in Uganda that calls for the death penalty for some gay people.

Mr. SHARLET: Looking at the, The Family’s 990s, where they’re moving their money to – into this African leadership academy called Cornerstone, which runs two programs: Youth Corps, which has described its in the past as an international quote, “invisible family binding together world leaders,” and also, an alumni organization designed to place Cornerstone grads – graduates of this sort of very elite educational program and politics and NGO’s through something called the African Youth Leadership Forum, which is run by -according to Ugandan media – which is run by David Bahati, this same legislator who introduced the Anti-Homosexuality Act.

Those behind this bill claim that it is necessary because, they charge, wealthy foreign homosexuals are pouring money into the country to turn everyone gay. But as is typical in cases like this, these people are denouncing ghosts which are reflections of their own reality. It is, in fact, wealth, powerful and influential Americans at all levels who are making this literal death sentence possible.

The entire interview is an eye-opener, and provides an excellent introductory view of The Family. Sharlet’s book is required reading for every American who cares about the future of not just this country but the entire world.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

HIV/AIDS Envoy: Uganda’s Chairing Of Commonwealth Meeting “A Mockery of Commonwealth Principles”

The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) takes place every two years to bring together the heads of states of some fifty-three countries, most of them former members of the British Commonwealth. CHOGM was last held in Kampala, Uganda in 2007. This year, the CHOGM will take place in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago on November 27-29, with Uganda President Yoweri Museveni serving as the meeting’s chair.

Prior to the CHOGM, there is another important series of meetings known as the Commonwealth People’s Forum. This Forum is conducted by the Commonwealth Foundation, which is officially sponsored by the Commonwealth. This year’s Forum is taking place in Port of Spain November 22-24, and it brings together hundreds of civil and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to discuss several important issues on wide ranging topics of human development around the world.

Today, Stephen Lewis, Co-Director of AIDS-Free World, is speaking before the Forum to address the Anti-Homosexuality Act which has been tabled before the Uganda Parliament. Lewis also serves as the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa. According to prepared remarks (PDF: 143KB/7 pages), Lewis said that the proposed Act is an “inflamatory redesign” of Uganda’s already draconian anti-sodomy law into “a veritable charter of malice.” He also warns that the proposed Act and Museveni’s chairing the CHOGM “puts the Commonwealth\’s legitimacy and integrity to the test”:

One must remember that the last meeting of CHOGM was held in Uganda in 2007, and issued what is called the “Munyonyo Statement of Respect and Understanding”. It asserted that the Commonwealth “is a body well-placed to affirm the fundamental truth that diversity is one of humanity\’s greatest strengths”. It went on to say that “accepting diversity, respecting the dignity of all human beings, and understanding the richness of our multiple identities have always been fundamental to the Commonwealth\’s principles and approach …”. President Museveni signed the document. How in the world does he reconcile the affirmation then with the defamation now?

Lewis recalls some of the most heinsous aspects of the proposed legislation — the death penalty for LGBT citizens with HIV/AIDS, the criminal sanctions against those who fail to report LGBT people to police within 24 hours, the extraterritorial clause which “extend(s) the arm of the state into the bedrooms of the world,” and the provisions which explicitly suspend international law — and he declares that the legislation has a “powerful Orwellian flavor”:

If it weren\’t so extreme, so menacing, so lunatic, it would be the stuff of theatrical parody. Parents, teachers, doctors, entrepreneurs, preachers, landlords, community health workers, members of the media, civil society activists, anyone who can identify a homosexual, gay or lesbian, or has reason to believe that homosexuality is lurking, must report to the authorities or face a fine, or jail term of three to ten years, or both. Can you imagine a father or a mother turning in a son or daughter? Can you imagine a teacher ratting on a student? Can you imagine a physician who\’s taken a Hippocratic oath to tend to the sick betraying that trust because of a patient\’s sexual orientation? But that\’s exactly what this law requires.

I\’ve truly never seen its like before. Please forgive the harsh language, but this intended antihomosexual statute has the taste of fascism.

And yet, that\’s only the half of it. What is put at terrible risk here — beyond the threat of the death penalty for HIV-positive homosexuals — is the entire apparatus of AIDS treatment, prevention and care.

Citing the significant amounts of HIV/AIDS funding now being funneled to Uganda from the United States (through PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Marlaria, Lewis warns that “there’s a very real crisis of conscience in the offing.” As written, this bill, which also bans any activities which can be seen as “support” for LGBT people, would place ordinary NGO employees and volunteers at risk for criminal penalties. Lewis continues:

I know that the views I am expressing on behalf of the organization I represent, AIDS-Free World, will seem tough and harsh to some. But let me tell you what we feel.

We don\’t think that this piece of legislation deserves a careful parsing of its clauses, invoking all of the international human rights instruments that Uganda has endorsed, from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, attempting to show where the Bill is in conflict with human rights principles. That just gives far too much credibility to the proposed legislation. On its face, without more than a simple glance at the substance, the Bill is revealed as an unbridled attack on the human rights of sexual minorities. There is no overall clause worthy of retention. There are phrases here or there (like the prohibition of sex with a minor) that any sentient human being can agree with. But the Bill cannot possibly be salvaged. It must be expunged in total from the parliamentary record. And for those who believe in conspiracy theories, let me say that the fundamentalist hand of the religious right in the United  States is not difficult to discern.

Nor do we think that we need treat this issue with respect. We don\’t believe that we have to ‘respectfully submit\’ our arguments to anyone, or seek to ‘respectfully influence\’ the powers-that-be. There are some moments in life where defining issues are indelibly joined. I remember sitting behind my then Canadian Prime Minister, Brian Mulroney, at the Commonwealth meeting in Vancouver in 1987. The issue was apartheid. The contest was between Margaret Thatcher and Mulroney, and Mulroney let her have it. There was no respectful pretense. He didn\’t parse the pass laws, he didn\’t invoke the clauses of international covenants, he just lacerated Prime Minister Thatcher for defending apartheid, and he decried it for what it was: a totalitarian regime rooted in racism and the savage decimation of human rights. It\’s worth noting that he was joined by Sir Shridath Ramphal, then the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, who was slightly more restrained but unmistakable of tone and purpose. That was a time when the Commonwealth stood for something.

Lewis skillfully defends the apartheid analogy be pointing out that he didn’t invent the analogy. The comparison between racial apartheid and anti-LGBT legislation was made by the Constitutional Court of South Africa itself in 1998 when it struck down that country’s anti-sodomy law.

Describing the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act as “positively criminal,” Lewis demands that the CHOGM takes up this issue and places it on the agenda. He also demands that the Commonwealth collectively commits to suspending Uganda from the Commonwealth should the proposed law pass. This step is typically reserved for when a member state undergoes a military coup or suspension of its constitution. Zimbabwe is the most recent suspension. However, South Africa was suspended in 1961 over apartheid, and it wasn’t re-admitted until 1994 after its racial policies were dismantled.

But that was a relatively easy call: no other member nation had state-sanctioned racial segregation policies. Forty of the fifty-three member nations currently have anti-sodomy laws, although none of them as severe as Uganda’s existing law which already provides for lifetime imprisonment. With the vast majority of the Commonwealth already on record as  fully prepared to imprison its LGBT population, and Museveni acting as chair of the Commonwealth summit, a statement addressing the proposed legislation is a severe long shot. But as Lewis concludes:

“The credibility of the Commonwealth is hanging by a spider\’s thread. …If the once-upon-a-time civilized values of the post-colonial Commonwealth are to be restored, then the monstrous war on homosexuality is the place to start the restoration. Uganda makes a perfect beginning.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.