Two Ugandan women arrested for kissing in public: police

Activists hold placards during their picket against Uganda's anti-homosexuality bill at the Ugandan High Commission in Pretoria, South Africa, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)

KAMPALA, Uganda -- Two Ugandan women were arrested for kissing in public, a police spokesperson told AFP on Tuesday, under an anti-gay law considered among the harshest in the world.

Uganda’s 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Act imposes penalties of up to life imprisonment for consensual same-sex relations, while “aggravated homosexuality” is punishable by death.

The two women, both in their 20s, were arrested following a complaint from neighbours in the northwestern city of Arua, about 450 kilometres (280 miles) north of the capital, Kampala.

They have been held in detention without legal representation since February 18.

“Neighbours contacted police complaining the two were practicing homosexuality and were seen kissing each other in public,” local police spokesperson Josephine Angucia told AFP, adding that the neighbours also took photos as evidence.

“They had seen many women going onto their one-roomed rented residence and spending nights there in what they suspected was same-sex orgies,” Angucia added.

Angucia said the case had been forwarded to the state prosecutor for “guidance and possible appearance in court.”

Human rights advocate Frank Mugisha condemned the arrest on X, saying it “underscores the grim reality” faced by victims under the anti-gay law.

“It has fuelled a dangerous cycle of blackmail and extortion,” Mugisha said. “Criminals are now using this law as a weapon to prey on the LGBTQ+ community, knowing their victims are too terrified to seek protection.”

Uganda is a conservative and predominantly Christian country in east Africa.

Its anti-gay law triggered outrage among rights campaigners and condemnation from the United Nations and Western countries. The World Bank suspended funding to the country, although this resumed in mid-2025.