UGANDAN JUDGES TOSS PETITION,UPHOLD ANTI LGBTQ LAW

On 3 April, Uganda’s constitutional court rejected activists’ petition seeking to annul or suspend the 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Act, which they say violated human rights and constitutionally protected rights.

Members of the LGBTQ community have said the law’s enactment in May unleashed torture, rape, arrest and eviction. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said almost 600 people reported human rights violations and abuses based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.

The law punishes homosexual acts with life imprisonment and ‘aggravated homosexuality’ (or rape) with the death sentence. People found to promote homosexuality can face up to 20 years in prison.

Continued…. Petitioners said the ruling voided some provisions that had criminalised people for allowing premises for homosexual acts as well as failure to report homosexual acts. They said they would appeal the ruling to the Ugandan Supreme Court.

The Ugandan government has blamed Western powers for imposing LGBTQ identities.

Upon the law’s enactment, the World Bank halted new lending to Uganda, and the United States announced visa and travel restrictions against Ugandan officials, citing human rights concerns.

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CAN SISI SAVE EGYPT?

Egypt’s president, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, has begun his third term, a departure from his 2018 pledge not to run again. He previously promised to stabilise the country after the 2011- 2013 turbulence. His 10-year administration has, however, seen restriction of press freedoms, jailing of critics and intimidation of would-be electoral challengers according to Human Rights Watch and Amnesty. In the past six months, 196 people were arrested on, among other charges, participating in unauthorised protests.

During his inauguration in the newly built administrative capital, he pledged more social spending amid spiralling inflation and debt. He also has to contend with Israel’s destruction of Gaza, ongoing disputes such as Sudan’s civil war, and concerns over Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam.

Continued….. It’s a full in-tray for the man who came to power following the 2013 coup that overthrew President Mohamed Mursi. On Tuesday (April 2), Al-Sisi outlined his wish list for the next six years. The question is, how much can he really achieve? Give us your predictions.

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King’s decision to go to Memphis was a reflection of his evolving consciousness regarding the true nature of the United States. Later in his life, he became increasingly vocal about economic issues and campaigned for a more equitable distribution of wealth and resources. He argued poverty, unemployment, and economic insecurity were not just individual problems but structural injustices that required systemic solutions.

Although King sacrificed tirelessly to achieve the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, four years later, he began questioning the utility of integration into what he called a ‘burning house.’ Just before his death, he was explicitly critical of capitalism and wanted a radical restructuring of the economic system.

Continued…He spoke out against militarism, materialism and poverty and famously said the United States needed a ‘radical revolution of values’ that would prioritise people over profits.

King’s assassination shocked the nation and sparked widespread outrage and mourning, with a 150,000-strong crowd turning out for his funeral in Atlanta. It also galvanised support for the civil rights movement and led to significant legislative changes. It included the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, also known as the Fair Housing Act.

Rest in power MLK.

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BASSEM YOUSSEF: ISRAELI FOREIGN AGENTS IN U.S. CONGRESS

During a recent interview with US-based journalist Chris Cuomo (@chriscuomo), Egyptian comedian Bassem Youssef (@byoussef) accused Florida Congressman Brian Mast of being a foreign agent. Mast recently wore an Israeli military uniform and has accepted donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), a pro-Israel lobbying group.

In November, a month after the 7 October escalation in the 75-year Israeli occupation of Palestine, AIPAC gave the highest amount to US political campaigns ever recorded in a single month: $3.7 million. Both Democrats and Republicans were recipients.

Youssef called out AIPAC for being a pro-Israel organisation that should be labelled a ‘foreign agent.’ The United States forbids foreigners from lobbying in the United States without first registering with the US Department of Justice.

Continued…. However, AIPAC has said it is a registered US lobbying group that no foreign entity, including Israel, has financially supported.

Since 7 October, Israel’s military operation and blockade have killed more than 33,000 Palestinians and injured more than 75,000 people. This comes despite an International Court of Justice ruling in January that Israel prevent genocidal acts and a recent UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire, but only during Ramadan.

Public opinion polls have shown the US population has grown increasingly sceptical of Israel’s actions over the past almost six months.

To watch the whole interview, tap this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOsSv005zXo&t=1s

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DR KING ON THE BOOTSTRAP MYTH

Fifty-six years after the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Nobel Peace Prize winner’s softer remarks on racial equality dominate his legacy more than his anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist perspective, which revolutionaries say led to his assassination.

As King politically matured, he began speaking out on economic matters, advocating for a fairer distribution of wealth and resources. He contended poverty and unemployment weren’t merely individual challenges but systemic injustices requiring systemic remedies. One of his final public appearances was alongside striking Black sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee.

Continued…. In a speech given a year before his assassination at the Riverside Church in New York City, noscriptd, ‘Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence,’ the political philosopher and civil-rights icon denounced what he called the ‘giant triplets’ of US society—militarism, materialism and racism—famously emphasising the urgent need for a ‘radical revolution of values,’ one that would elevate people above profits.

In numerous speeches, King also debunked the bootstrap philosophy, which says anyone could succeed in the United States by working hard and ‘pulling themselves up by their bootstraps.’

Since his assassination, many say the US government has co-opted King’s legacy by creating a federal holiday in 1986 to commemorate his birthday. Streets renamed after King can be found in hundreds of US cities, ironically in the poorest and Blackest neighbourhoods. Meanwhile, the corporate media and US public schools only replay his 1963 ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, which focused on racial equality.

What do you think Dr. King would say about today’s state of economic relations between Western powers and African people?

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BRITAIN ARMS ISRAEL ISRAEL KILLS BRITS

The Israeli killing of seven aid workers in the Gaza Strip has reignited calls for the British government to stop selling weapons to Tel Aviv. Among the dead were three Britons who died after an airstrike hit their car. They were working for the World Central Kitchen, a charity providing food to thousands of Palestinians facing starvation amid Israel’s bombardment and blockade.

Supreme Court judges and hundreds of lawyers and academics have now written an open letter to UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, warning the continued shipment of arms is a breach of international law. Despite the growing pressure, Downing Street insists it won’t change its policy and will continue to back Israel’s onslaught.

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