Red Pepper  OUT perceived Gays now WANTED for Persecution in the International Criminal Arena

By Melanie Nathan, February 25, 2014.

On the very day that the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, assented to the Anti-homosexuality Bill, the publishers, staff and editors of Red Pepper Tabloid, Uganda, saw fit, yet again, to publish the faces and names of 200 alleged lesbians, gays and transgender individuals, including those perceived as such. In effect screaming for mob lynching!

Red Pepper has outed gays, with the specific purpose of inciting the inevitable witch hunts and persecution of LGBT Ugandans. It is clear to all that the Tabloid, widely read in Uganda, is in on the bandwagon, exploiting the dire circumstances of Ugandan gays, participating in the heightened terror which has befallen them since the enactment of the legislation, and hence is complicit in persecutory actions.

Many Ugandans whose faces are in this magazine, have had to run for cover and are currently hiding out, in terror, for fear of being recognized on the streets. They are unable to work, roam from lodging to lodging, seeking safe housing, and are unable to access jobs, family or government help.

Red Pepper has set itself up for more than crimes against humanity through their intent to persecute, but also lined themselves up for defamation charges, because according to the new law, calling someone “homo” is calling them a criminal under the new law. Unlike the old penal code, the new law specifically defines homosexuality as a crime. Yet they have made such accusation, without a single one of those persons being tried for homosexuality.

Exactly one year ago, Feb 25, 2013, I wrote this in an article, entitled

OUTING Red Pepper owners and staff for persecution of Gays in Uganda

Ugandans actively working to persecute fellow Ugandans – yes here we OUT the criminals current Red Pepper crew

For many years, the Ugandan tabloid, Red Pepper has purposely targeted alleged gay, lesbian and transgender people, outing them in the print magazine, often using pictures accompanied by pervasive rhetoric.    The most recent publication with photos and names, outed alleged gays and lesbians in a print publication dated Sunday February 24, 2013, accusing them, falsely, of the myth of so called “recruitment into the lifestyle of homosexuality.”

Imagine waking up in gay-hating Uganda, a country frothing at the bit to pass the Kill the Gays Bill, labeled the worst place to be gay, to find yourself outed on its pages.  This has happened over the years to numerous LGBTI Ugandans and some who were not even gay.

The consequences of such an outing in Uganda are well known and can be attested to by the many gay Ugandans who have had to flee and others now in safe houses. Some of these people have sought asylum in foreign countries.  I have personally interviewed people who are either still in Uganda or have fled to Sweden, France, the United kingdom, and the U.S.A  and they have related similar personal experiences, all noting the resulting persecution, including physical assault and mental torture.

Now that we have years of proof of the persecution of these LGBTI Ugandans, recounting how they were first outed by Red Pepper and then suffered directly after the exposure, we are able to point the finger directly back at the odious publishers and call them persecutors.

The owners, management and staff of Red Pepper have now earned a designation far worse than mere gossip-mongers, they have joined the ranks of human rights abusers and persecutors, knowing the harm that these outings will cause. This goes way further than mere gossip and they all know it.

Now Red Pepper’s intent is much worse, as it has always been touted that once the new Anti-Homosexuality law passes, the Government and State sanctioned anti-gay law, is in effect, a license to kill.

UPDATED 2/26 : I JUST FOUND OUT THAT RED PEPPER INCLUDED ME, Melanie Nathan, from the U.S.A. on their hit list. 

Here is the U.S. Ambassador is condemning  Red Pepper – https://soundcloud.com/bbc-world-service/us-ambassador-to-uganda-scott