A friend of mine is in trouble, he may loose his life. That much I know, but I'm at a loss to know what I can do. I'm posting in the hopes that you may have some ideas.

Micheal is a activist for gay people in Uganda. The situation in Uganda is politically charged now because president Museveni is making a play for life presidency. A main ploy is a strategy of “divide and rule.”

In October of 2004 a radio talk show featured my friend Micheal and other gay activists. The government fined the radio station on the basis of that the program was contrary to public morality and breached existing laws.

Earlier this month Kampala radio station KFM was shut down and radio host Andrew Mwenda jailed and charged with sedition. news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4153560.stm The incident was sparked by Mwenda pointing to questions surrounding the crash of the Ugandan helicopter which killed John Garang the Sundanese Vice President. Mwenda was the host involved with the October talk show.

After the October talk show there was a period of calm for a few weeks in Micheal's life, but then the threats against him began in earnest. He survived in part because he's clever, and in part it seems to me because the government pulls on the thread of gay rights like a person teasing a cat with a string.

The tensions have been mounting over the past month. Behind the Mask the great Website for gay and lesbian affairs in Africa provides useful links to articles about the rising troubles there www.mask.org.za/SECTIONS/A..._index.html

My most recent message from Micheal was sent very early Saturday morning from Uganda. His apartment was raided by a mob of Muslims who beat him and collected his papers, saying they will kill him and the others and do what is being done in Iran.

Only about 16% of Ugandans are Muslims. In July of this year Uganda Sharia Courts were established allafrica.com/stories/200507250707.html The legal status of the courts in regards to Ugandan civil law is not yet formal, part of the complex backdrop of pending domestic relations legislation which address issues such as inheritance, bride price, and other contentious cultural practices int his ethnically diverse country. The Tabliqs are a Muslim sect who want to bring Ugandan society in conformity with Islam as they see it. Over the years of Museveni's presidency various rebel movements associated with Tabliqs have operated against the government.

In light of the Ugandan government's operations against gay organizations and activists over the last year, I find Micheal's current crisis extremely worrying. During the spring it became clear that the government would not press legal charges against him, for lack of evidence of lawbreaking. Nevertheless, threats against him have persisted. This mob action strikes me as something too clever by half. Violence against Micheal has the double advantage of silencing him while at the same time Museveni can point to the problem with Islamic Fundamentalists in Uganda.

Micheal possesses a passport and a visa to enter Venezuela or Brazil, valid until the middle of September. I don't have the money to buy airfare out of Uganda for him, I'm not even sure how I'd go about that if I did. Earlier in the year his sanctuaries within Uganda were found out, so dropping out sight will be harder this time. I don't know whether he can escape to Tanzania or Kenya to buy time. I could continue to speculate, but I'm afraid in all my thinking I haven't come up with anything useful. Please contact me or post here if you have any thoughts on the matter.

Here's a link to Amnesty International's papers on intimidation of gay people in Uganda web.amnesty.org/library/In...FR590062005