Abstract
How should aid donors respond to human rights violations in ‘recipient’ countries? Much of the literature on this topic focuses on whether donors use aid conditionality rather than the effectiveness of different donor responses in preventing rights abuses. This article argues that to better understand the effectiveness of conditionality, and donor responses to rights violations more generally, it is necessary to consider the role of domestic actors and processes in recipient and donor countries. Drawing on the concept of ‘two-level games’, it develops a framework for donor responses to rights abuses that incorporates international- and domestic-level processes. This article examines these dynamics with a case study of donor responses to the Anti-Homosexuality Bill/Act in Uganda between 2009 and 2014. The analysis shows how different donor responses impacted the struggle against the repressive legislation—positively and negatively—through their effects on domestic actors. More broadly, the article shows that engaging with domestic actors and processes can shed light on how aid donors can most effectively respond to human rights violations in different political contexts.
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Notes
This article focuses exclusively on bilateral aid donors, i.e. governments providing ODA. It does not consider multilateral donors or international NGOs.
The abbreviation ‘LGBT’ for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender is used throughout the article.
Aid conditionality refers to aid provided with conditions including economic reform, human rights performance, or foreign policy. Political conditionality refers specifically to conditions on democracy, human rights, and governance. The focus on human rights here means they are used interchangeably.
There is some evidence to suggest that foreign aid can improve citizens attitudes towards government and donor (see e.g. Dietrich et al. 2018).
Dasandi and Erez (2019) present a framework of ‘donor dilemmas’, arguing donors have the strongest reason to withdraw aid when facing a ‘complicity dilemma’.
Additional interviews were conducted via telephone.
This study went through an ethical review process at the University of Birmingham.
See the Uganda Antigay Bill Draft, April 2009, available at http://www.publiceye.org/publications/globalizing-the-culture-wars/uganda-antigay-bill.php#april (last accessed on 10 April, 2020).
The Resolution is available at http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+MOTION+P7-RC-2009-0259+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN (last accessed on 25 May, 2019).
Interview with USAID staff.
For example, see Daily Monitor (2009).
Interview with CSCHRCL members.
Interview with advisor to President Museveni.
Interview with Ugandan civil society activist.
The full statement is available at https://www.pambazuka.org/activism/statement-british-aid-cut-threats-african-countries-violate-lbgti-rights (last accessed on 22 November, 2019).
This was discussed in most of the interviews.
The role of domestic politics in driving donor responses was highlighted in all interviews with donor staff.
This was described as a key factor in all interviews with donor officials.
Interview with USAID staff member.
Interview with donor staff.
Interview with donor staff.
Staff from various agencies highlighted the close relationship between Western donors and the Ugandan Government, especially Museveni, at this time.
From interviews with donor staff.
Interview with donor staff.
Interview with CSCHRCL member.
CSCHRCL members stated that prior to 2009 a few smaller donors provided funds to LGBT organisations, most notably the Dutch government. After 2009, larger donors, including the US and UK, increasingly provided funds to the Coalition. After the AHA was overturned in 2014, there was a sharp decline in donor funding.
This was expressed in all interviews with CSCHRCL members.
Baird’s full statement is available at https://www.canada.ca/en/news/archive/2012/10/address-minister-baird-inter-parliamentary-union-assembly.html?=undefined&wbdisable=true (last accessed on 22 November, 2019).
Baird was referring to David Kato, a prominent Ugandan LGBT activist, who was murdered in 2011.
Kadaga’s full response is available at http://www.parliament.go.ug/new/index.php/about-parliament/parliamentary-news/124-speaker-clarifies-uganda-parliament-s-stand-on-homosexuality (last accessed on 22 November, 2019).
All interviewees agreed on this.
Interview with CSCHRCL member.
Interview with CSCHRCL member.
Mwenda is editor of the Ugandan newspaper, The Independent, and was a prominent opponent of the Bill.
Interviews with CSCHRCL members.
The guidelines are available at https://76crimes.com/2013/12/21/ugandan-activists-advice-on-threats-to-cut-aid/ (last accessed on 22 November, 2019).
This was expressed in all interviews with CSCHRCL members.
This was mentioned by all donor staff interviewed.
Interview with donor staff.
Interview with USAID implementing partner staff. US aid to Uganda in 2013 provided 500,000 HIV/AIDS patients with antiretroviral drugs (Downie 2014: 3).
Donor staff provided examples of projects reviewed in response to the AHA.
Interview with donor staff.
The full text of the UK parliamentary debate on Uganda’s AHA is available at https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2014-02-12/debates/140212192000002/UgandanAnti-HomosexualityLaw (last accessed on 17 August, 2019).
Interview with USAID official.
See the CSCHRL press release for information about the petition, available at https://www.scribd.com/document/211849667/14-03-11-AHA-Petition-Filing-Press-Statement (last accessed on 2 January, 2020).
Interview with donor staff.
Descriptions of these efforts were provided in various interviews with donor staff.
Interview with advisor to President Museveni.
Interview with CSCHRCL member.
Interviews with CSCHRCL note that CSCHRCL members met with businesses and encouraged them to take a stand against the AHA.
Interview with donor staff.
Interview with CSCHRCL member.
Interview with CSCHRCL member.
This statement was by MP Nick Herbert during the debate on LGBT rights in Uganda on 2 April, 2014, available at https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2014-04-02/debates/14040272000001/LGBTRights(Uganda) (last accessed on 15 March, 2020).
The lack of respect in donor statements was raised in various interviews with Ugandan activists.
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Acknowledgments
For their invaluable help, advice, and feedback, I would like to thank John Boswell, Stephen Brown, Jasmine Burnley, Jack Corbett, Nic Cheeseman, Sofia Collignon, Susan Dodsworth, Lior Erez, Jonathan Fisher, Gillian Fletcher, David Hudson, Sam Gibson, Nicolas Lemay-Hebert, Claire Manibog, Heather Marquette, Claire Mcloughlin, Neil Mitchell, Frank Mugisha, Jasmine O’Connor, Simon Osborn, Martin Ottmann, Brian Pellot, SM Rodriguez, Emily St Denny, James Weinberg, and the reviewers and editors of the Journal of International Relations and Development. I would especially like to thank all of those that agreed to be interviewed for this study for so generously sharing their time and experiences. This work was supported by the Economic Social Research Council [ESRC IAA 2014-UEF].
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Dasandi, N. Foreign aid donors, domestic actors, and human rights violations: the politics and diplomacy of opposing Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act. J Int Relat Dev 25, 657–684 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41268-022-00257-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41268-022-00257-z