PERSONS IN UGANDA

Objective III
The objective provides that:
(i) Every effort shall be made to integrate all the peoples of Uganda while at the
same time recognising the existence of their ethnic, religious, ideological, political
and cultural diversity.
(ii) Everything shall be done to promote a culture of cooperation, understanding,
appreciation, tolerance and respect for each other’s customs, traditions and
beliefs.
This objective urges all stakeholders to recognise the differences that are bound to
exist within a population and treat such differences with understanding and tolerance.
LGBTI persons are considered deviants from the known and acceptable views of
majority and most of the human rights violations they face are based on the fact
that their views and lifestyles are considered different and unacceptable. However
going by this objective, the Constitution and laws thereunder should be implemented
and interpreted in such a way as to understand and appreciate the differences that
always exist within people and integrating all differences and all people for national
unity and stability.
Objective V
The objective provides that:
(i) The State shall guarantee and respect institutions which are charged by the State
with responsibility for protecting and promoting human rights by providing them
with adequate resources to function effectively.
(ii) The State shall guarantee and respect the independent nongovernmental
organisations which protect and promote human rights.
This objective enjoins the State to respect the organs it puts in place to enhance the
promotion and protection of human rights and also to guarantee and respect Non
Governmental Organisations (NGOs) that are established with the aim of promoting
human rights. This is important since the major way through which LGBTI persons in
Uganda are seeking protection of their rights is through civil society groupings. The
state is required by this objective to guarantee the existence and respect of these civil
society organisations and their work. Refusal to register an LGBTI organisation could
therefore be interpreted as unconstitutional under this objective. State established
institutions like the Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) have also come out to
speak for the rights of LGBTI persons in particular circumstances. These institutions
make recommendations to government concerning different laws and policies and
the government is enjoined to respect such recommendations.
Objective XIV
The objective provides that:
The State shall endeavour to fulfil the fundamental rights of all Ugandans to social
justice and economic development and shall, in particular, ensure that-
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