Ugandesere af anden seksuel orientering ses ned på og forfølges ofte – men de vil også testes, rådgives og behandles mod den frygtede hiv/aids-lidelse og har nu taget sagen i egen hånd – det skaber surhed i Musevenis regering i Kampala.
KAMPALA, 11 July 2012 (PlusNews): Gay rights activists have opened Uganda’s first clinic for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people in the capital, Kampala, where it will provide testing, counselling and treatment for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.
“We need our own clinic because we have had health service providers, and in some cases other clients at the health centre, attack us either because they suspect us to be gay or know that we are gay,” said Pepe Julian Onziema, programme director and acting advocacy officer at Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), a local rights group.
“The main idea of the clinic is to provide voluntary counselling and testing, HIV/AIDS treatment and care, and promote general wellness”, added he.
“We do not feel safe. Some practi-tioners gossip about you when you are right there, increasing stigma (fordomme/af-standtagen)”, Onziema said, noting:
“When I was about 16, I went to test for HIV and I was asked to bring my partner so we could be tested and counselled together. I brought someone of my sex and we were sent out and not catered for. At this clinic, we want to protect our community from such humiliation, and stress and promote health and wellness.”
A recent AIDS Indicator Survey puts Uganda’s HIV prevalence at 7,3 percent, but according to the Crane Survey, a 2008-09 study of high-risk groups in Uganda, HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men (MSM) was 13,7 percent.
Despite the high level of HIV among MSM, the government has not included the group in its national strategy to fight HIV because homosexual activity is illegal in Uganda.
A bill before parliament seeks even more stringent punishments for people engaging in homosexual acts and those perceived to be “promoting” homosexuality.
The clinic was opened on 19 May 2012 by Bishop Christopher Senyonjo – one of the country’s few religious leaders willing to speak for gay rights – and is managed by a local gay rights lobby group, Ice Breakers Uganda (IBU).
“The clinic is being run by professional health workers. It will offer better avenues in health seeking behaviours among the LGBTI community,” said Denis Wamala, an IBU official.
“The clinic will offer free care, support and treatment services to LGBTI in Uganda… here they can easily open up because they are free”, stated he.
Government criticism
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http://www.plusnews.org/Report/95844/UGANDA-New-LGBTI-clinic-faces-fierce-government-criticism
