Ebola ban prevents Ugandan LGBTQ+ activists from speaking at Ottawa rights conference

Kerr said the policy is barring three Ugandans who had been set to speak at a conference next week and to meet with MPs and foreign service officials about violent repression in Uganda and how Canada is supporting those affected.

“The anti-rights movements have really picked up on targeting LGBTQI people as a fairly easy target, and they’re having some success around the world on that, but that makes Canada’s role all the more important,” he said.

“Countries like Russia and the United States are working actively against the human rights of our communities.”

Uganda introduced a law in 2023 prescribing the death penalty for what it calls “aggravated homosexuality” and life imprisonment for other homosexual acts. The move came after advocacy by U.S.-based evangelical groups and the Russian government.

The House of Commons subcommittee on human rights has been hearing testimony about the crackdown, which has undermined efforts to eliminate HIV and has led some Ugandans to seek asylum in neighbouring countries.

Kerr said Uganda’s policies have inspired similar moves in other countries, including Senegal, Ghana and Belarus.

“It really is a focal point for the anti-LGBT movements,” he said. “It’s a very strong human-rights movement in Uganda that is fighting back against this, so it was really important for us to highlight this.”

The World Health Organization has asked countries like Canada to drop their blanket bans, arguing they only make it harder to stop the epidemic. The offices of Michel and of Immigration Minister Lena Diab have not responded to requests for comment.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2026.

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press

Ebola ban prevents Ugandan LGBTQ+ activists from speaking at Ottawa rights conference

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