US imposes sanctions on Uganda for anti-gay law

The US has imposed sanctions on Uganda for anti-gay laws it says are "counter to universal human rights".It said Ugandans involved in human rights abuses against gay people would be banned from entering the US. The White House is also cutting funds to a number of programmes it is running with the Ugandan authorities, and cancelling a military exercise. Uganda has said it will not be pressed by the West to change the laws, which can see gay people jailed for life. The law signed in February allows life imprisonment for acts of "aggravated homosexuality" and criminalises the "promotion of homosexuality". The White House described the legislation an affront that called into question Uganda's commitment to protecting human rights. "The Department of State is taking measures to prevent entry into the United States by certain Ugandan officials involved in serious human rights abuses, including against LGBT individuals," said National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden Hayden in a written statement." The US will also discontinue or redirect funds for certain programmes involving the Ugandan Police Force, National Public Health Institute and Ministry of Health, and has cancelled plans to conduct a US military-sponsored aviation exercise in the African nation. It is the latest effort by US officials to challenge Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Act.   Source ( BBC