（每日一读）2014年2月高考英语考前突破 阅读理解能力 社会生活 乌干达总统将签署反同性恋法案

乌干达总统将签署反同性恋法案Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is set to sign into law a controversial new bill under which homosexuals could be given long prison terms.乌干达总统约韦里·穆塞韦尼将签署生效一份具有争议的法案，该法案规定同性恋者将被长期监禁。 He wants to approve the law before foreign media to assert "Uganda's independence in the face of Western pressure", a spokesman said. US President Barack Obama has cautioned the bill would be a backward step. Mr Museveni had previously agreed to put the bill on hold pending US scientific advice. "The president is signing the anti-homosexuality bill today [Monday] at 11:00 [0800 GMT]," government spokesman Ofwono Opondo told Reuters news agency. "He wants to sign it with the full witness of the international media to demonstrate Uganda's independence in the face of Western pressure and provocation." Homosexual acts are already illegal in Uganda. In December a gay rights campaigner spoke of her fears about the legislation The new law punishes first-time offenders with 14 years in jail, and allows life imprisonment as the penalty for acts of "aggravated homosexuality". The law makes it a crime not to report gay people. It covers lesbians for the first time, and criminalises the promotion of homosexuality - even talking about it without condemning it. The bill originally proposed the death penalty for some homosexual acts, but that was later removed amid international criticism. A gay rights activist in Uganda told the BBC's Newsday programme he was "very scared" about the new bill. "Actually I didn't even go to work today [Monday]. I'm locked up in the house. "And I don't know what's going to happen now. I'm talking to all my activists on the phone. And it's the same, they are all locked up in their houses. They can't move out. They are watching their back to see what happens."