“It is motivated purely by hate and by a drive to reap commercial gain,” said Jacqueline Kasha Nabagesera, another petitioner, who was herself named in the Red Pepper tabloid.
French telecom operator Orange confirmed Tuesday it had stopped advertising in the Red Pepper, which last month listed 200 people it said were gay, under the headline “Exposed!”
A spokesman for Orange said it has not renewed its contract after it ended last Thursday.
In 2011, prominent Ugandan gay rights campaigner David Kato was bludgeoned to death at his home after another newspaper splashed photos, names and addresses of gays in Uganda on its front page along with a banner headline reading “Hang Them”.
The court could take up to six months to hear the petition, Odoi added, noting that while constitutional petitions take priority over other cases, several are already waiting to be heard.
Several nations have cut off development aid to Uganda following the new law, including Denmark, Norway, The Netherlands and Sweden.
The World Bank has also stalled a $90 million (65 million euro) loan intended to help Uganda strengthen its health care system.
Opposition leader Kizza Besigye has accused the government of using the issue of homosexuality to divert attention from domestic problems such as corruption scandals or Kampala’s military backing of South Sudan’s government against rebel forces.
But homophobia is widespread in Uganda, where American-style evangelical Christianity is on the rise.
Gay men and women face frequent harassment and threats of violence.
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