Vague description of porn fueling attacks on women

By Ann Amito and Innocent Anguyo

THE description of pornography in the Anti-pornography Act is ambiguous, the reason why it has sparked-off a series of heinous acts of violence against women, a group of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) has said.      

Celebrating this year’s Women’s Day, the NGOs said is of no value because scores of women could shun it for fear of being attacked by mob if they moved out.

If the vagueness in the Law is not cleared fast, all women’s rights attained in Uganda could be rolled-back, the NGOs argued.

The Anti-Pornography Act 2014 refers to Pornography as “the representation of the sexual parts of a person for primarily sexual excitement.”

Addressing the press in Kampala, the NGOs under their umbrella body, Human Rights Network Uganda (HURINET-U) said “the failure to elaborate on sexual parts and to define what amounts to representation leaves the law open to numerous interpretations which has led to the stripping of women naked by sections of the public under the guise of enforcing the Act.”

 “If a woman reveals her breasts in the process of breast feeding her hungry baby in a public place, is that another form of indecency?” asked Regina Bafaki, the Executive Director of Action for Development (ACFODE).

“The Act does not outlaw wearing of miniskirts, yet since its passing, more than 50 women have been stripped naked in different parts across Uganda over misconception that they are breaking the law by wearing miniskirts,”  Bafaki said.

Bafaki said ever since the enactment of the Act, women especially those in rural areas have become afraid of wearing attires of their taste because their choice of clothing could easily attract the wrath of mob.

Diana Kagere of Centre for Domestic Violence Prevention (CEDOVIP) implored government to retract all the contentious clauses in the Act in a bid to clear the general confusion surrounding it.

Kagere said the Act in its current form infringes on and is in contradiction with internationally accepted human rights provisions entrenched in the Ugandan constitution such as the right to human dignity, the right to freedom from discrimination, the right to privacy and the right to expression.

“Whereas the intention to prohibit pornography is good, importing the issue of dressing standards for women without determining what is legally acceptable, cannot be the solution to this challenge,” she reiterated.

Paddy Mainuka of HURINET-U urged government to expedite the process of amending the Act before overzealous men start raping women in the process of undressing their victims under guise of enforcing the law. 

Gertrude Ssekabira, the chairperson of ACFODE urged the Government to sensitize the masses about the Act.

“Government through its institutions like the ministry of Ethics and Integrity should undertake all means to effectively sensitize the general public about the Anti-pornography Act, its back ground and purpose of the bill,” said Ssekabira.

The NGOs also want the Ethics ministry to develop guidelines to enforce the Act in light of clearing the ambiguities shrouding it.