A proposed law being debated in the African nation of Uganda would give the government the right to imprison and in some cases kill gays.

The law, if passed, would require families to report gay family members to police and prosecute landlords who rent to gay residents.

The proposed law also mandates death for any gay person with HIV/AIDS.

The measure was proposed in Uganda after a group of American conservative clergy visited the country in an effort to convert gays into heterosexual behavior.

However a large contingent of American Christians have publicly denounced the legislation.

If you are surprised by the headline of this story you may not be the only one.  Currently there are riots in Kampala Uganda and local newsources that would typically provide information to people caught in the mix are literally halted…atleast on the web.  The Independent, a local Ugandan newsource, apparently is down because so many people are looking to it for information.  They are communicating via Twitter  In this day in age that shouldn’t be an issue right?  Especially with so many people relying on Twitter as a source for information similar to a newswire.  The main problem with that is information generally has to trend high enough to be distributed to masses on the platform.  In this instance it hasn’t.  Hundreds if not thousands of people (in Kampala and in the US who may have family there) literally have no idea what is going on from the ground.  You are probably thinking that mainstream media has surely covered this in World News.  No dice.  Of course as far at the US is concerned it is September 11th so most coverage today has been focused on that.  However, there is no mention of riots in Kampala on CNN.com which is often dubbed as the “King of News Media using Social Media.”  MSNBC.com does have coverage in their world section.  Most coverage is coming from the BBC and The Guardian (as seen from Google News).  What has resulted is a handful of citizen journalist, one of who includes Gospel Singer Kirk Franklin who was caught in the riots yesterday, reporting what was going on from the ground there.   We reported on this early this morning on Black Web 2.0, here is his own video account of what is going on via YouTube:

Franklin has reported that he is safe via his Twitter account.  Others actively included in disseminating information from the ground, one of whom is in The Red Zone of the attacks, included @mugumya @solomonking @camaraafrica @UgandaTalks.  While they haven’t ditched Twitter completely for updates they have resulted back to blogging to get information out to people who need it.  Solomon King who has a blog called The Rogue King, is live blogging from a Red Zone on his own site in Twitter-like fashion via text, here is a snippet from his site:

1. There’s a mamba (armoured truck) in the hood!4 minutes ago from txt
2. Whoa. Back in Munaku gunshots getting much louder and more frequent. Must be at Kasubi. 17 minutes ago from txt
3. Geez this sneaking around obscure roads and paths on a boda boda is so surreal. 22 minutes ago from txt
4. Okay, heading into office to check on things and pick up my laptop / internet connection. 32 minutes ago from txt
5. Crowd of angry youth coming our way wielding rocks and bars. Need to find a safe spot. 39 minutes ago from txt

Our partner Appfrica.net (based in Uganda) is also reporting that Uganda Telecom is offering free Twitter ussage for Ugandans. Sending ‘tweetme’ to 2299 from anywhere within Uganda, and you’ll get the instructions to sign up.  If you want to help get information out you can re-tweet (repost) some of the citizens tweets and add #kampala to the end of your tweet.  You can follow the #Kampala Tweets in real-time by doing a search on twitter for Kampala or clicking this link.

BlackWeb20.com covers website and application launches; culturally relevant Internet industry news; and mainstream Internet industry news from an African-American perspective.  They also analyze emerging web trends and how they apply to web properties that target African-Americans or African-American culture.

Nigerian Militants Attack a Tanker
Nigerian militants, from the country’s Niger Delta region, attacked a diesel tanker and kidnapped a Romanian worker, reports BBC. The tanker was carrying 4,000 tons of diesel from Lagos to Port Harcourt when its engine was blown up with dynamite. The tanker was seriously damaged.  Many militants in the region say they are fighting to get their fair share of wealth from Nigeria’s oil. Still, some groups get their money from extortion and oil theft. The violence has forced oil production in the nation to be cut by a fifth in the last few years.

World Lens: More peace troops head into Somalia, Rapper Jay-Z catches a game in London and Reggaeton star Daddy Yankee gets political. See pictures.

Charity will cut back on food aid to HIV positive. The World Food Program will have to cut back on aid to HIV-positive people in Uganda because funds are decreasing, reports The Monitor. The cuts are expected to hit 1.5 million people, not including the children currently receiving food from the school-feeding program. The organization will keep providing aid to people in the nation who are HIV-positive, but they should be in certain categories (like new moms and their babies, and some homeless people). Stanlake Samkange, the charity’s Ugandan representative, said if more money came their way they would be “happy to help” those who needed it. But he doesn’t want the group to promise aid when it isn’t sure it can provide it. A spokesman for the government’s AIDS Commission also stated that aid received from the program was never meant to be permanent anyway and that a replacement would need to be found soon so the needy won’t suffer. AIDS activists, of course, are not happy with the program’s announcement. One advocate said the patients are especially vulnerable. “They are not strong enough to engage in agriculture to feed themselves,” he said.

Ugandan man killed because he kept smoking.

In Uganda, a group of people attacked and killed a man because he would not stop smoking, reports the BBC. The incident, which has left local officials in shock, happened in a public bar, where the country has had a ban on smoking for about four years. “I’m really not happy with it. He had broken the law, but they should have taken it to the police for the law to take its course,” saidJohn Okeya, an official in the village where it all happened. While the victim was smoking and drinking at the bar he made “provocative comments” to others who told him to stop smoking before the mob eventually approached him and strangled him to death. Many residents have spoken out against the case of extreme vigilantism, saying the attackers went too far. “These people who killed made a mistake because the law does not say kill a smoker, the law says take the smoker to the authority concerned,” said one resident. However another local said the action was necessary. “He was told to move away and smoke from outside and he refused,” the he said. The police have detained several suspects in the killing.

Zimbabwe leaders already aren’t getting along, reports say. Not too long after holding a press conference where everyone was all smiles, it looks like there’s trouble between the Zimbabwe leaders already. Just days after President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai (along with Arthur Mutambara who leads a small faction of the opposition) publicly agreed on a power sharing deal, they are reportedly deadlocked once again on ministry appointments. Sources tell CNN that ZANU-Pf, the party of controversial longtime leader Mugabe wants to control important ministries like defense, justice and home affairs while giving Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change less important ones like correctional services. In the deal signed earlier this week, ZANU-Pf was assigned 15 council ministers and the opposition altogether was assigned 16. Mugabe seemed to have misgivings about the deal very early on. In fact, he told his supporters that the agreement was a humiliation, but that he had to sign it since Tsvangirai gained so many votes in the first round of elections (while Tsvangirai had the majority he didn’t have the over 50 percent needed to secure a victory). And at least one official from the Movement for Democratic Change also had problems with the deal the weekend before it was signed, saying Tsvangirai shouldn’t sign until issues with the ministries were taken care of. Still, he went ahead and inked the deal on Monday.

Wyclef helps Haiti, and there’s model search in Kenya

World Lens: Musician Wyclef Jean pitches in to help Haiti, Zimbabwe leaders are all smiles and the search for is on for Kenya’s next top model. See these pictures and more.

http://www.bet.com/News/Photos/NewsFlipBookWorldlens0915.htm??Referrer={457FF100-3B70-4ACA-BAD9-54876F2F0D30}

Ugandan official wants miniskirts banned. Don’t pack your “freakum” dress if you’re planning a trip to Uganda. One Ugandan official wants miniskirts banned because women wearing them distract drivers, causing traffic accidents. In addition, BBC reports, the skirts should be looked at as “indecent,” and those wearing them should be dealt with under the nation’s law, Nsaba Buturo, Uganda’s ethics and integrity minister told reporters. “What’s wrong with a miniskirt? You can cause an accident because some of our people are weak mentally,” he said. Get more of what Buturo had to say at BET.com/News.  Well, do you think short skirts are the root of all evil?