press@ccrjustice.org
April 9, 2015, New York, NY – The Center for Constitutional Rights asked a court to issue a subpoena to Martin Ssempa, a prominent anti-gay crusader in Uganda, to testify in a case brought on behalf of the Ugandan LGBTI rights group Sexual Minorities Uganda against U.S.-based anti-gay extremist Scott Lively. The Center issued the following statement on today’s motion:
The Center for Constitutional Rights has learned that Martin Ssempa, a leading and notorious figure in the persecution of the LGBTI community in Uganda, is in fact a U.S. citizen. Ssempa is not himself a target of the lawsuit, but as a close ally of Scott Lively he has intimate knowledge of key facts in the case. As a witness who is a U.S. citizen, he is subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S. court presiding over the case brought on behalf of Sexual Minorities Uganda against Lively for the role he has played in the persecution of LGBTI people and organizations in Uganda.
The Center for Constitutional Rights represents Sexual Minorities Uganda in the case against Scott Lively for his efforts to strip away fundamental rights from LGBTI persons in Uganda. See Sexual Minorities Uganda v. Lively for more information.
The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Founded in 1966 by attorneys who represented civil rights movements in the South, CCR is a non-profit legal and educational organization committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.
the center for constitutional rights
