A bill currently under Ugandan parliamentary consideration could potentially intensify the African nation’s anti-gay laws, to the dismay of its French and American embassies.

The Anti-Homosexuality Bill, penned by lawmaker David Bahati, will harshen the country’s policies on sexual minorities – such as the bans on publicly discussing homosexuality and lending land to homosexuals.

According to an email from Joann Lockard, the Ugandan embassy’s public affairs officer, “If adopted, a bill further criminalizing homosexuality would constitute a significant step backwards for the protection of human rights in Uganda.”

While there have been no official reactions from the U.S. government, the Human Rights Watch claimed four congresspersons wrote to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton about condemning the bill.

Read the entire advocate.com article here.

-Zachary Culler