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The first Ugandan man charged under anti-gay law would face the death penalty, Reuters has gathered.
The man, aged 20, was charged with "aggravated homosexuality", an offence punishable by death under the country's recently enacted anti-gay law.
Defying pressure from Western governments and rights organisations, Uganda in May enacted one of the world's harshest laws targeting the LGBT community.
It prescribes life in prison for same-sex intercourse. The death penalty can apply in cases deemed "aggravated", which include repeat offences, gay sex that transmits terminal illness, or same-sex intercourse with a minor, an elderly person or a person with disabilities.
According to a charge sheet seen by Reuters, the defendant was charged on August 18 with aggravated homosexuality after he "performed unlawful sexual intercourse" with a 41-year-old man. It did not specify why the act was considered aggravated.
"Since it is a capital offence triable by the High Court, the charge was read out and explained to him in the Magistrate’s Court on (the) 18th and he was remanded," Jacqueline Okui, spokesperson for the office of the director of public prosecutions, told Reuters.
Okui did not disclose any other information on the matter. She stated that she was not aware of anyone else being charged with aggravated homosexuality in the past.
A counsel for the defendant, Justine Balya, stated that she believed the entire law was unlawful. The statute has been challenged in court, but the courts have yet to hear it.
Balya stated that four other persons had been charged under the law since its passage and that her client was the first to face charges for aggravated homosexuality. She refused to discuss the circumstances of his case.
Uganda has not executed anyone in nearly two decades, but the death penalty has not been abolished, and President Yoweri Museveni promised to begin executions in 2018 to stem a rise in crime.
The law's passage three months ago attracted significant outrage and threats of legal repercussions. In response to the law, the World Bank froze new public financing to Uganda earlier this month.
Visa restrictions have also been imposed on some Ugandan officials, and President Joe Biden has ordered a review of US aid to Uganda.
But reacting to the World Bank loan suspension, President Museveni insisted that no one can coerce Uganda into abandoning its principles.
Museveni said, “Last night, an official from the World Bank rang me to alert me about the statement from that bank regarding the suspension of any new requests from Uganda for loans."
“I want to inform everybody, starting with Ugandans that Uganda will develop with or without loans. It is, therefore, unfortunate that the World Bank and other actors dare to want to coerce us into abandoning our faith, culture, principles, and sovereignty, using money. They under-estimate all Africans,” he added.
Also, SaharaReporters earlier reported that in a statement shared on August 17 on his X (formerly Twitter) handle, Museveni described the World Bank and other actors like it as ‘insufferable'.
He also referred to the World Bank as a 'thoughtless homosexual lobby', insisting that foreign loans and aid were not crucial to the socio-economic growth of Africa.