The Ugandan parliament adjourned today without discussing the Anti Homosexuality Bill. However, the proposed legislation may yet be debated at a later date.

There was widespread confusion about the status of the “gay execution” bill during the past fortnight as it continued its convoluted legislative journey. A parliamentary committee discussed the bill last Friday and recommended its passage, but no debate has been held this week.

Speaker Edward Ssekandi said that there was not enough time to discuss the bill. There are rumours that the proposed legislation may be discussed in a special session before the official close of Parliament next Wednesday, but this appears unlikely due to scheduling issues.

“The news that the brutal anti-gay law won’t be discussed in Parliament today is a victory for all Ugandans and people across the world who value human rights,” said Alice Jay of Avaaz, a campaigning website that collected over one and a half million signatures opposing the bill.

“This was a dangerous Bill and there is a lot of tension and riots in the country,” said Bishop Christopher Senyonjo. “This Bill must never see the light of day as the mob could use this to inflict terrible crimes against people.”

“The pressure from people around the world has had a big impact, and the resulting influence from the international community has played a very important role in stopping this going forward today.”

In the last week the bill has been condemned by Foreign Minister William Hague, Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams and US President Barack Obama.

Some commentators have described the bill as a “diversion” from ongoing tensions in Uganda. Protests against rising food and fuel prices have met with a brutal response from police. Opposition leaders were sprayed with pink paint during a demonstration on Tuesday in order to more easily identify them for arrest.

Parliamentary spokesperson Helen Kawesa told Bloomberg that the bill could be revived “when parliament has time”.

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