The New York Times recently published an article documenting rape of men in Congo.  BlackStarNews.com reports that rape of men for the purpose of spreading HIV/AIDS was used in Northern Uganda by government soldiers as early as 1992.

Black Star News notes that the Times, though notified of mass, targeted rapes in Northern Uganda in 1992, decided not to cover the story. Milton Allimadi writes that in 1992, he contacted New York Times reporter Donatella Lorch, who had just been appointed East Africa Bureau Chief:

“I told her about a big and chilling story I had been following from Uganda, that had not yet been dealt with by any of the major media outlets, including The New York Times. That story was about the deliberate spread of HIV/Aids by Yoweri Museveni’s regime, which had unleashed government soldiers known to be HIV-positive, to rape people in Uganda’s Acholi region. That’s the region in Uganda which was then resisting Museveni’s regime; and still is, today.

I told Lorch that I had already done much of the reporting by telephone here in New York, calling contacts in Uganda, and that I had interviewed a Ugandan doctor, then visiting New York City, who also confirmed the diabolical policy. The doctor told me he was convinced there was a policy to spread the disease because for the first time men were also being raped by the government soldiers. I also gave Lorch a copy of a videotape of a documentary that a German crew had shot which contained interviews with some Acholi males who described their ordeal. Even then, I could tell that she could not relate to such a seemingly outlandish story. In fact I recall her saying –and at least I took it to be a joke at the time, “Maybe the Ugandan army is recruiting more gay soldiers into the army.”

Yet, some of the victims later reportedly committed suicide out of humiliation. After all, in some of the remote parts of Acholi, anal intercourse between men was practically unheard of.

Another reason why most outside media outlets, including The New York Times, were unwilling to touch the story is that often corporate media mirror official U.S. policy and Uganda under Museveni was considered to be an “ally.” Uganda at the time was also being celebrated for its open and aggressive policy to combat and contain HIV/AIDS. Later, it was revealed that some of the reported achievements were exaggerated and funnelled to Western media outlets by well-paid public relations firms.

In fairness it wasn’t only The New York Times that ignored the Uganda targeted-and homosexual-rapes story. I tried to interest countless publications, including The Village Voice and The Nation. I remember once writing to Andrew Sullivan, now a famous blogger and commentator when he was editor of The New Republic. I recall him writing back something to the effect: “I don’t believe you.”

Politician Charged with Sedition and Treason

Inside Uganda, an Acholi politician, Tiberio Atwoma Okeny, was one of the few who publicly accused the Museveni regime of using targeted rapes, including of males, to spread HIV/AIDS to punish Acholis for their perceived support of insurgency against his regime. Okeny was arrested and charged with sedition and treason.

Yoweri Museveni: accused of using soldiers known to be HIV-positive to
spread the disease among civilians suspected of supporting insurgency

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