GENEVA. Members of Parliament attending the 139th Assembly of the Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Geneva Switzerland have strongly rejected the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) agenda which had been presented to the Assembly to be debated as an emergency item for the next 140th IPU Assembly.

This was after IPU President Gabriela Cuevas Barron presented a question subjected to voting by member states on whether they all agreed that the next 140th Assembly's standing committee on Democracy and Human Rights should hold a panel debate that will not lead to a resolution, entitled "The role of Parliaments in ending discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and ensuring respect for the Human rights of LGBTI persons".

Led by Rt. Hon. Rebecca Kadaga, MPs put up a spirited fight against a well-orchestrated machination led by Canada and Belgium who had lobbied many delegates to vote in favor of the motion.

Hon Akamba Paul (Busiki County) eloquently reminded the General Assembly of the IPU statute and the main reasons why it was formed in 1889 and hence calling all delegates to vote in respect of that statute.

"Article 1(2) of the IPU statute states that the Inter-Parliamentary Union shall work for peace and cooperation among peoples and for the solid establishment of representative institution and also contribute to the defence and promotion of human rights, which are universal in scope, but the agenda presented here has been widely rejected by many member states hence lacking universality in scope," he said.

The issue was put to a vote and notably China, Russia and many Arab and African states all rallied behind Uganda and voted against the motion.

After a successful tally, President Gabriela Cuevas Barron informed delegates that 499 delegates had voted in favor whereas 689 MPs voted against the proposal throwing majorly the Ugandan MPs in jubilation for they had spearheaded the campaign against the LGBT proposal in the Assembly. Read more via Kampala Post