Africa
Tabloid joins politician, bishops in targeting LGBTI Kenyans
In the wake of last month’s High Court decision in favor of a Kenyan organization seeking human rights for LGBTI people, some anti-gay Kenyans have opened the door to even more intense persecution of LGBTI Kenyans. The latest step in that direction was today’s publication by Kenya’s tabloid Weekly Citizen of a list of the… Read more »
Kenya’s LGBT Community Gains The Right To Organize, But Religious Opposition Looms
Nairobi, Kenya (RNS) In a move that has stirred the anger of Kenya’s anti-gay Christian groups and sparked celebration by pro-gay clergy, the nation’s High Court has ruled that gay rights activists have the right to formally register their own groups and welfare organizations. A three-judge panel issued the ruling Friday (April 24) in response… Read more »
Egypt: Gay foreigners can be banned from entry or deported
An Egyptian court has ruled that gay foreigners can be deported from the country or banned from entry. The case, brought before an Egyptian administrative court on Tuesday (14 April), involved an allegedly gay Libyan man who had previously been barred from returning to the country by the interior ministry in 2008. Hoping to return… Read more »
Constant threats ‘part of life’ for top Ugandan LGBT activist
New York (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – In Uganda, homosexuality is considered akin to pedophilia, and prominent LGBT activist Frank Mugisha regards the threats he constantly receives as “part of life.” “I get lots of threats on Facebook, I get threats on the phone…I get dozens of them,” Mugisha said in an interview with the Thomson… Read more »
South Africa: Father granted surrogate maternity leave
A court has granted full maternity leave to a father whose baby was delivered by surrogate. In South Africa, mothers who give birth are entitled to four months maternity leave, starting one month before their due date. The man, who is unnamed to protect the identity of his child, had a child with his same-sex… Read more »
Alice Nkom: Preventing gay Cameroonians from accessing HIV care violates their human rights
Cameroonian lawyer Alice Nkom says her country will never get on top of its HIV epidemic if it continues to prevent gay citizens from accessing healthcare through repressive laws. The campaigner told PinkNews it was a “key issue” in Cameroon because “you violate the human rights of people to access health, medicines and treatment”. “When… Read more »
Gay men reluctant to come out of the closet
Selebi-Phikwe: Reaching out to men in same sex relationships is proving to be a mammoth task for HIV non-governmental organisation (NGO), Silence Kills Support Group (SKSG). The NGO, which began operation in January 2015, has identified over 50 men who have sex with men (MSM) in Selebi-Phikwe and surrounding areas. Speaking during the New Directions… Read more »
Assaults in Tunisia: ‘daily violence remains unpunished’
Two members of the activist organization Chouf of lesbian, bisexual and trans Tunisians fighting discrimination against women were the targets of assaults in recent weeks. Chouf issued this statement: In only one week, two friends and members of Chouf were horrifically attacked. One of the members of our office was raped by a man who… Read more »
Business leaders urged to call out Egypt on LGBT rights
International business leaders have been urged to address the plight of LGBT people at an Egyptian economic conference this week. A number of prominent executives are scheduled to speak at the Egypt Economic Development Conference (EEDC) being held in Sharm El-Sheikh from 13 to 15 March. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has written to these… Read more »
Homosexuality In Prehistoric Africa
Our knowledge of homosexuality in prehistoric African cultures is limited by the late-Middle Age European views of Africans, of homosexuality, and of course, the European reason for being in sub-Saharan Africa in the first place – the slave trade. Among the earliest references to it are some of the records of the Inquisition in Brazil.… Read more »
The Sisi government’s repression of Egypt’s LGBT community
Under the pretext or preserving public morality gay men have found self-described the Egyptian Ministry of Interior’s “vice squad” (a euphemistic term with connotations eerily reminiscent of “moral police”) charging and arresting them for “debauchery”. Their rights are, like many of their compatriots, pretty much non-existent, especially if they are deemed by the authorities to… Read more »
Tunisia: Swedish man jailed for homosexual acts
A Swedish man has been sentenced to two years behind bars in Tunisia, for committing “homosexual acts”. The Swedish Foreign Ministry has confirmed that a Swedish citizen is being held in Tunsia, after falling foul of the country’s anti-gay laws. A spokesperson said: “The man, who is in his 50s, was sentenced February 4 to… Read more »
One Dead In ‘St. Paul’s Senior High School’s’ Riot
Students of St. Paul’s Senior High School (SHS) in Denu have been asked to go home following a rampage that left a student dead and several others injured. The students were reportedly protesting against attempts by the Police to protect their colleagues whom they accused of sodomy. A teacher at the school said the students… Read more »
Angolan TV producers apologise over gays kissing
The producers of a popular television soap in Angola have apologised after an episode which showed a gay couple kissing caused outrage among viewers. State television said it had suspended broadcasts of Jikulumessu for “technical reasons”. Many viewers felt the programme went too far by showing two men kissing, although homosexuality is not illegal in… Read more »
Kutesa lashes out at pro-gay activists
Kampala – The President of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Mr Sam Kutesa, yesterday directed a salvo at pro-gay activists and international rights campaigners who last year pushed a petition to block his ascension to the UN seat. Mr Kutesa, who is in the country on an official visit since his election last June… Read more »
12 men arrested in Nigeria for holding a ‘gay wedding’
Most of them were teenagers and could be possibly put to death 12 men were arrested for holding a ‘gay wedding’ in Nigeria yesterday (26 January). Fariq Maidguri, 18, and Abba Mohammed, 25, who was not caught, are accused of attempting to hold a ceremony for their relationship. The suspects, most of them teenagers, were… Read more »
Sisi Is Persecuting, Prosecuting, and Publicly Shaming Egypt’s Gays
The military government in Cairo is trying to prove it’s more ‘Islamic’ than the Islamists it ousted in 2013. So it’s hunting down easy targets: LGBT Egyptians. Cairo — Mohamed was sitting in the steam room nursing his bad back when dozens of Egypt’s black-clad police officers burst into the downtown Cairo bathhouse with a… Read more »
Egypt Reduces Sentences For 8 Men Who Appeared In Gay Wedding Video
An Egyptian appeals court on Saturday reduced sentences for eight men who appeared in a gay wedding video. The men were sentenced to three years in prison for “inciting debauchery.” The appeals court upheld the convictions but reduced their sentences to one year in prison, the AP reported. The court is expected to explain its… Read more »
Breaking: LGBTI Ugandans launch Bombastic Magazine as a Christmas present
Uganda’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Intersex (LGBTI) community launches Bombastic Magazine, the symbol of our ‘Reclaiming the Media’ Campaign today. Bombastic Magazine is a compilation of stories, testimonies and opinions by LGBTI Ugandans. The objective of this campaign is to end violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people countrywide. In continuing to criminalize… Read more »
35 injured as armed men attack gays
Armed men left 35 people injured after they stormed a gay party and beat up guests in Harare over the weekend, Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) organisation has claimed. GALZ said its members were attacked by a dozen of unidentified men who gate crashed the organization’s party which was held at a private venue… Read more »
LGBTI Ugandans tell their stories in their own magazine
The Ugandan LGBTI community has launched its own magazine to tell their stories to the nation. “Bombastic Magazine is a compilation of stories, testimonies and opinions by LGBTI Ugandans. The objective of this campaign is to end violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people countrywide,” the introductory press release states. Supporters of the magazine… Read more »
Arresting gay people isn’t the way to deal with AIDS
Today is the first hearing for the trial of at least 26 men alleged to be taking part in sexual activities at a bathhouse in central Cairo. Over the last two weeks, Egypt’s human rights activists have responded with furore at the sting operation and broadcasted arrest of these men. The sting operation, organised by… Read more »
Egypt: Men accused of ‘spreading AIDS’ in bathhouse to go to trial
Dozens of men who were recently arrested in a raid on a bathhouse in Cairo, Egypt went to trial this week accused of “debauchery”. The men arrested were accused of “perversions” as news reporters told police that the bathhouses were used for “group perversions”. One reporter posted pictures of the dozens of men, mainly naked,… Read more »
Gay & Lesbian Mobilization in Algeria: the Emergence of a Movement
Over the past few decades,[i] human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) have became more visible across the world, especially in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA).[ii] Eighty-one countries criminalize homosexuality, with penalties ranging from fines and imprisonment to the death penalty. Each country in the MENA region directly… Read more »
AIDS In Tunisia Is No Myth, Even If It’s Rarely Talked About
Ghalia had dressed up for the occasion. The woman, who is homeless and HIV-positive, was participating in a press conference organized by the Tunisian Organization for the Fight Against STDs and AIDS (ATLMST) on Dec. 2, World AIDS Day. On the stage, professionals were discussing the crisis using acronyms — HIV, MSM (Men who have… Read more »
Egyptian Reporter Aids in Police Crackdown on Gays
For a while after the Arab Spring, it looked like gay Egyptians were finally feeling safe enough to step out of the closet. But now, they’re being forced back underground as a result of an escalating police crackdown – one that activists say is being encouraged by pro-government media. Cairo police stormed a bath house… Read more »
Living in fear: Egypt’s gay community
Cairo (CNN) — Two men exchange rings and hug in celebration aboard a Nile boat, as ululations fill the air and a traditional engagement song plays in the background. But within days, their celebration has turned to shock and sadness: after a video of the “gay wedding” spread across Egyptian social media, the men were… Read more »
Egypt Arrests 25 Men For Homosexuality In Bath House Raid
Cairo (AP) — An Egyptian official says security forces raided a bath house and arrested 25 men for homosexuality, dragging them naked out of the building in downtown Cairo. The security official says the raid on the bath house, or hammam, took place on Sunday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not… Read more »
Egypt: Dozens of men accused of ‘spreading AIDS’ arrested naked in bathhouse raid
Dozens of men have been arrested in a raid on a bathhouse in Cairo, Egypt at the weekend, and a programme will air this week on “the dens for spreading AIDS in Egypt”. The men arrested were accused of “perversions”, according to reports. News reporters told police that the bathhouses were used for “group perversions”.… Read more »
Living dangerously: Behind the scenes with Algeria’s first LGBT magazine
In Algeria, a country where homosexuality is criminalized, a group of young activists took the risk of launching a magazine that talks about LGBT issues in North Africa. El-Shad magazine – which means “abnormal” in Arabic – has been available online since Nov. 20. Our Observer, El-Shad’s editor-in-chief O. Harim, told us about the launch… Read more »
Uganda’s leading gay activist: We live in fear of violence, blackmail and extortion
Ugandan gay activist Frank Mugisha talks to PinkNews about the threats facing Uganda’s LGBT community – and what the rest of the world can do to help. Frank Mugisha is the Executive Director of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), winner of the Robert F Kennedy Human Rights Award, and Nobel Peace Prize nominee. He is one… Read more »
African Commission to promote LGBTI interests
The African Commission on Human and People’s Rights recently adopted a historic multilateral agreement, along with 25 nations, the EU, UNAIDS and the UNDP. Owing to its importance for Africa in particular, we are publishing the entire communique. This could well serve African and other LGBTI advocates well and be one more instrument to persuade… Read more »
Cameroon: Accuser relents, but police won’t free alleged gay man
The author of this article is an activist for LGBT rights in Cameroon who writes under a pseudonym. A 22-year-old Cameroonian man, identified here as A.H., was held in police custody from Nov. 17 to Nov. 20 after a Facebook correspondent entrapped him and denounced him to police as a homosexual. The accuser, Serge, turned… Read more »
My gay life in Nigeria – Isolation, danger & fear
Ethan Regal* tells his personal story of living in Nigeria as a gay man: When I was a young boy in Lagos, Nigeria, I had a mysterious, unexplainable tingling sensation whenever I saw an attractive guy. The stories I heard regarding romance involved a boy and girl. So I thought to myself: maybe I’m a… Read more »
Botswana gay rights group wins right to exist after court battle
A court in Botswana has ruled that the government acted illegally when it banned a gay rights group. The Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Botswana group (Legabibo) took a case to the country’s High Court, after it was blocked from registering as an organisation by the Department of Labour and Home Affairs. However, today a judge… Read more »
LGBTI Organizations
The Botswana High Court allows registration of an LGBTI rights organization, finding denial violates Constitutional rights of equal protection, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and association. On November 14, 2014 the Botswana High Court ruled that the government cannot deny registration of the organization LEGABIBO, an acronym for Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals of Botswana.… Read more »
Uganda drafts new anti-gay laws
Politicians want seven-year prison term for ‘promotion’ of homosexuality, according to leaked copy The Ugandan government could introduce new wide-reaching anti-gay laws before the end of the year, which could see people jailed for up to seven years for “promoting homosexuality”, activists warned on Saturday. The move comes nearly a year after Ugandan politicians passed… Read more »
South Africa: Pretoria introduces healthcare centre for gay and bisexual men
The city of Pretoria in South Africa has introduced a healthcare practice for gay and bisexual men as an alternative to “abusive” general facilities. The Times Live reports the Ten81 Medical Practice features a HIV and STD specialist nurse as well as a doctor who is an expert in sexual health. Director Dawie Nel said… Read more »
Egypt: Eight men sentenced to three years in prison for ‘gay wedding’ video
Cairo court hands down jail sentence amid uproar from defendants’ families A court in Egypt has sentenced eight men to three years in prison for appearing in a video that purported to show a gay wedding. The video, which became an online hit after it was posted on YouTube in September, shows two men kissing,… Read more »
Rally condemns Egypt anti-gay witch-hunt
Forty people rallied outside the Egyptian Embassy in London on Saturday 18 October to protest against the witch-hunting of LGBTI people in Egypt. It was part of an International Day of Action in solidarity with persecuted Egyptian LGBTIs. Similar protests took place in Berlin, New York, Mexico City, Ottawa and Barcelona. The London protest was… Read more »
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