Pope Francis has thanked Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and the country's parliament for protecting family values. His remarks were cited by Uganda's Speaker of Parliament, Anita Among, who had an audience at the Vatican with the Pope.
"The Holy Father commended the President Museveni, Parliament of Uganda and the people of Uganda for always putting God first, and for their efforts in preserving family values," Among said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
As local media added, the Catholic Church head called Museveni a "brilliant leader" who has done much for humanity to protect human rights and praised his benign attitude towards refugees.
Addressing Among, the pontiff urged the speaker to remain steadfast in the defense of Christian values.
"I urge you to continue standing by your strong Christian values and always promote legislation that will ensure freedom of worship, economic freedom and social justice as exemplified in the Bible; as a Parliamentarian, always be sensitive to decisions and legislation that separates people from the will of God," he said as quoted by local media.
Pope Francis also congratulated Yoweri Museveni and Uganda's First Lady Janet Museveni on their 50th wedding anniversary.
In late May, President Museveni signed into law the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which is designed to protect the family and religious values of the East African nation, according to senator Asuman Basalirwa, who proposed it.
The legislation, which provides for the death penalty for contracting an incurable disease such as HIV/AIDS through homosexual intercourse and punishes homosexual "propaganda" with 20 years in prison, has sparked a wave of condemnation in the Western countries for allegedly violating human rights.
The US reacted to the law by imposing travel restrictions on officials from the country in June, and President Joe Biden threatened aid cuts and other sanctions. Uganda's authorities called the threats blackmail.