Ugandan paper calls for gay people to be hanged

Gay people named in an article face violence and abuse after an African newspaper claims they are recruiting children. Human rights activists have warned that the lives of gay people in Uganda are in danger after a newspaper published a story featuring the names and photographs of 100 homosexuals under the headline: "Hang Them". At least one woman named in the story has been forced to leave her home after neighbors pelted it with stones, while several others have been verbally abused, according to the campaign group Sexual Minorities Uganda. The article appeared in the Rolling Stone newspaper, a new weekly title started by journalism graduates. Its publication came just days before the first anniversary of the introduction to parliament of a controversial anti-homosexuality bill that calls for the death penalty for those convicted of repeated same-sex relations, and life imprisonment for others. Gay activists in Uganda say the proposed legislation has fueled hate speech and created a climate of fear among homosexuals. The media have played a strong role in this. The widely read tabloid Red Pepper has previously outed dozens of gay people under headlines such as "Top Homos in Uganda named". But the Rolling Stone story appears to incite people to violence against gays. On the front page, the paper claims that the homosexual community aims to "recruit 1,000,000 children by 2012", and that parents "face heart-breaks (sic) as homos raids schools". Inside, a headline reads: "Hang them; They are after our kids!!". The article lists personal details of those named, including their addresses. Giles Muhame, the managing editor of the paper, defended the story, saying it was his duty as a journalist to expose the evil in society. "Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda but nobody is taking action against these people," he said. "They are recruiting new members among our kids, and destroying the moral fabric of our country." Asked about the headline that urged hanging, he said: "Other countries have capital punishment to stop drug traffickers; we should have the same for homosexuals."