By Al Mahadi Kungu
Last week, the U.S. announced that it was to remove Uganda and a couple of other countries in Africa from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) beginning January 2024 over what they referred to as human rights violations.
This agreement (AGOA) allows African countries to export a wide range of products to the United States duty-free. This preferential trade treatment is, however, subject to a series of conditions in terms of political pluralism, respect for human rights and the rule of law, and the fight against corruption.
U.S. President Joe Biden, in a letter to Congress, accused the Ugandan government of human rights violations. Biden has voiced similar accusations against the government of Uganda since the adoption of the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 in May this year.
The law criminalizes same-sex marriage. It also prohibites the promotion of acts of homosexuality. At the time, Biden issued threats of sanctions and withdrawal of aid by the U.S. from Uganda.
He also directed President Museveni to immediately repeal the law on grounds that the legislation is a “tragic violation of universal human rights”.
Despite that pressure, Uganda has not indicated any intentions of repealing the law since doing it would mean that government has abandoned its primary role of protecting values and moral-ethical norms of the country, and instead, allow-in interference and disastrous imperial tendencies by the West.
Locking the country out of AGOA will definitely have a huge inward impact on Uganda’s coffee export earnings, but that should not force Uganda to go against its beliefs.
The decision should instead be used as a wake-up call from Uganda and its people to understand the nature of their international partners.
Africans, in particular Ugandans, have a traditional way of life and society, and they stick to traditional values like family, parents, tribe, and nation. The way of life goes under certain moral-ethical norms of African peoples.
In addition, this is a strength and wonderful peculiarity of Africans. The traditional values are an integral part of the life of modern Africans who aspire to prosperity and sovereignty of their nations.
Americans want to hold Ugandans and other Africans at ransom and compromise their beliefs and values.
Values and moral-ethical norms are a base for a strong and healthy society. The main postulates and norms of behaviour are fixed in religion. In Islam and Christianity, they are the same. Human education of the basic values and ideals goes first of all in a family.
The West is implementing its neo-colonial aspirations towards Africa, focusing on the destruction of the bases of a strong and healthy society on the continent.
It is easier to manipulate a person without ideals and values, and it is easier to persuade him to follow somebody’s will.
A person with strong principles and moral values is unshakeable. That is why Americans and Europeans badly try to dislodge enrooted African values and traditions.
They want to weaken African societies and substitute authority of family, tribe and national interests by liberal vie of life.
Under cover of protection of human rights and freedom, the West promotes artificially developed liberal values. Washington, London, and Brussel are obsessed with LGBTQ+ agenda, representing promotion of sexual minority’s rights as a most vital issue of modern society.
As if the problems of famine, education, resources, access, and health of ordinary people were not so much important in comparison with LGBTQ community.
The reason is a strict plan of Western countries to impose alien liberal values on Africans. If they are a success, Washington and their allies will get weakened, unhealthy, and dependent on the external humanitarian and financial aid society of African countries, which are easy to manipulate.
The next step will be the establishment of total control over all spheres of life and the exploitation of natural resources of the continent.
In other words – a new era of neo-colonialism will come. This is the main goal of the West.
That is why Americans and Europeans so aggressively protect LGBTQ agenda, using mechanisms of international institutes (IMF and World Bank, for example) to push countries where people don’t want to follow Western liberal values.
Uganda is an independent country with rich history and culture. That is why the people of Uganda must stand for their values and freedom and build a strong and healthy society.
The Writer is a Ugandan journalist with Passion for Current African Affairs. adamkungu7@gmail.com
