Family advocates say public hand-holding among adult men is ‘un-African’

Family advocates and religious leaders have expressed concern over prolonged hand-holding between adult men in public, describing the practice as culturally unacceptable in Uganda and arguing that such displays carry controversial interpretations within the country’s social landscape. The debate comes amid heightened public scrutiny over physical intimacy, particularly between individuals of the same sex, in a society where public displays of affection are generally expected to remain restrained.

In Kampala and across the country, it is not uncommon to see adult males holding hands while walking or engaging in extended physical embraces. However, Eng. Stephen Langa, the executive director of Family Life Network, contends that such actions cross traditional boundaries. Mr Langa stated that it is uncommon and culturally inappropriate for grown men in Uganda to walk around holding hands for extended periods, describing the act as both un-African and abnormal. He argued that such public behavior inevitably leads observers to assume the individuals are involved in a homosexual relationship, noting that while hand-holding remains culturally acceptable among young children, the practice becomes awkward once it involves teenagers and adults.

Echoing these concerns, Pastor Solomon Male, a Pentecostal preacher and executive director of Arising for Christ, emphasized that Ugandan society maintains clear boundaries regarding public expressions of friendship. Pastor Male noted that while two men can freely walk together as friends, holding hands crosses a line, as public hand-holding is traditionally reserved for heterosexual couples or parents with young children. He added that shifting social attitudes toward same-sex relationships have heavily influenced how the public interprets physical contact between men, explaining that after his campaign against homosexuality sensitized the public, physical contact beyond a standard greeting began raising suspicions. According to Pastor Male, the normal standard for men remains a quick greeting without continued hand-holding.

However, marriage coach Lucy Peace Nantume of Couple Binders offered a contrasting perspective, cautioning the public against automatically equating physical affection between men with homosexuality. Ms Nantume explained that individuals express friendship and emotional warmth differently, with some naturally being more physically demonstrative. She observed that heightened awareness around homosexuality has made men hyper-vigilant, leading people to misinterpret harmless touch. While acknowledging the existence of same-sex relationships in Uganda, Ms Nantume highlighted the difficulty of judging a person’s sexual orientation purely from public gestures, which often carry benign meanings depending on individual personalities and contexts.

The debate unfolds against the backdrop of Uganda’s legal framework under the Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2023, which criminalizes specific same-sex acts and provides severe penalties, including life imprisonment and the death penalty for aggravated cases. In April 2024, the Constitutional Court upheld the core of the law while striking down specific provisions, such as the mandatory reporting of homosexual acts. That judgment is currently under appeal in the Supreme Court by human rights activists seeking to strike down the entire law on constitutional grounds. Meanwhile, President Yoweri Museveni has clarified that the legislation targets recruitment, exhibitionism, promotion, and explicit acts, rather than the mere state of identifying as gay or lesbian.