Speaker Among to meet Pope Francis

The meeting, which will be held in Rome, Italy, is one of the many engagements the Speaker of Parliament will be having with the Holy Father on faith and religion.

According to a diplomatic message by the Apostolic Nunciature in the Federal Republic of Germany to the Embassy of Uganda to the Holy See, the Pope will meet the Speaker on Friday, August 25, 2023.

The message states that after the Papal audience, the Speaker, as per protocol practise, will be received by His Eminence Pietro Cardinal Parolin, Secretary of State of His Holiness.

"The Apostolic Nunciature wishes to fulfil its duty to convey the following indications to the Embassy of the Republic of Uganda to the Holy See in connection with the abovementioned official visit to the Vatican," reads the Note Verbale.

This will be Speaker Among's third visit to His Holiness the Pope, after the others in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

This development comes against the backdrop of a meeting between Uganda’s Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja and the Pope in July.

During a meeting, Pope Francis expressed his reservations about the Anti-Homosexuality law, saying that the Catholic Church supports the law but would want Uganda to review the death sentence clause.

This was revealed by Nabbanja while talking to New Vision, a daily newspaper in Uganda.

"The Pope said they support the Anti-Homosexuality Law that was passed in Uganda but asked Uganda to review the death sentence clause," she told the newspaper.

Clause 3 of the Anti-Homosexuality Law states that a person who commits the offence of aggravated homosexuality is liable, on conviction, to a death sentence. The clause further states that the crime can be committed if the victim is a child and the perpetrator is a parent, relative, or guardian, when the victim contracts a terminal illness, et cetera.