Gay Prosecutions, Same old, same old...

News from Senegal, by way of IGLHRC.

Oh well, gay men, gay people are continuing to be arrested because they are gay. Same old, same old.

There was a small article that I saw of a Dutch National who is on trial in Gambia. Check it out here.

In Uganda, by the way, gay people have no access to the media. Even when we pay our money. So, here were some members of the gay community, going to the newspapers, in need of publishing a press release. Three media houses; New Vision, Monitor, Observer… And all turned down the request. One did it after payments were made, and the money was refunded. With their regrets.

Oh, the reason why it was rejected? The Media Council is ‘monitoring’ and making sure that homosexuals have no voice in lovely Uganda.

So, good old gug blog is one of the only ways that we can speak out to the world out there.

Same old, same old.

They arrest us. We complain, or whine about the arrests. Inform those who we can. And hope we are not going to be arrested. Same old, same old...

Now, to some brothers who were arrested in Senegal.

Action Alert from IGLHRC

Senegal: Release Men Arrested for Homosexuality in Darou Mousty

Arrests, convictions, and detentions for alleged homosexuality violate the rights to be free from discrimination, to equality before the law, and to privacy.

The Issue

On June 19, 2009, four men from the city of Darou Mousty, in the department of Kébémer in the Louga region, were arrested and subsequently detained at a police station in the city. These four men were arrested for alleged sexual acts "against nature." There are also reports that the police forced these men to reveal the names of people who are supposedly "homosexual." The week of August 10, 2009, two of the men were convicted of "unnatural" offenses, despite the only evidence against them being denunciations from townspeople. One man received a sentence of 2 years in prison and the other 5 years. A third man, who is seventeen years old, will stand trial August 24, 2009 in a court for minors. The status of the fourth is unknown.

Senegal is one of the few francophone African countries that criminalizes homosexuality, under Article 319 of the Senegalese Penal Code. Last year, nine members of AIDES Senegal were arrested and sentenced to 8 years in prison for "indecent conduct and unnatural acts" and "conspiracy." The Court of Appeals in Dakar overturned the sentences in April 2009.

Laws criminalizing and detentions of people because of consensual sex between persons of the same sex are arbitrary and violate international law. Such laws violate Articles 2 and 26 on the rights to equality before the law, freedom from discrimination, and privacy of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as stated in Toonen v. Australia (1994) and by the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. In addition, the Committee on the Rights of the Child has stated its concern over laws that criminalize "homosexual relations, including those of persons under 18 years old" as being impermissible discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation under the Convention on the Rights of the Child (General Comments 3 & 4, Concluding Observations: Chile, April 2007).

The criminalization of consensual same sex relations runs counter to the guarantees of nondiscrimination and equality before the law in Articles 2, 3, and 28 of the African Charter on Human and People's Rights and Article 7 of the Senegalese Constitution.

Housing? No right for Homosexuals

Gambia: Action Alert - Condemn Attacks on the Right to Housing

Picked this from IGLHRC

President Yahya A. J. J. Jammeh of the Gambia has called on citizens of this West African nation to deny housing to "homosexuals," making LGBT people targets for discrimination and violence yet again. IGLHRC believes that his statements violate the rights to freedom from discrimination, to adequate housing, to dignity, and to security.

Denial of Housing to LGBT People in the Gambia

On May 23, 2009, President Jammeh urged party members of the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC), who represent the majority in the country's National Assembly, not to rent or allow homosexuals to stay in their compounds. The statement was made at a monument commemorating the 1994 coup that brought Jammeh, a former lieutenant in the Gambian army, into power.

Last year, President Jammeh publicly denounced homosexuality and gave LGBT people in Gambia an ultimatum to leave the country by stating that he would "cut of the head" of anyone believed to be homosexual discovered in Gambia. He also warned Gambian hotel owners not to rent rooms to homosexuals.

The right to adequate housing is guaranteed under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), and articulated in the Yogyakarta Principles on the application of international human rights law in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity. Additionally, the rights to dignity and security, components of the right to adequate housing, are guaranteed under the Gambian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. States may not permit forced evictions and must ensure nondiscrimination in access to adequate housing for all of its citizens.

Ahhhh!

Same old, same old. See, we gay people are considered pariahs, non people. So those who are gay feel happy that they can in self righteousness deny us simple things which other 'people' have a right to.

In Uganda, if you are a known homosexual, dont be suprised if no landlord will have you... Or again, you may find one who is ok. And doesnt mind.

But this shouldnt worry you. Our world is one of thorns and rose flowers. One thing that those who dont like us are gifted with is the gift of prejudice. We cannot be human beings, we cannot be normal, so because we are normal, we hide right under their noses...!

It is a beautiful day. The country is in a drought state. People in the east and north are literally dying of hunger. Bad deal there. Our institutions have been ravaged by lots of bad governance. Course, we are a moral people so we have to continue pouring much energy in the pursuit of sin and immorality and homosexuality.

But last night, it rained. Drizzled, more or less. Dampened the ubiquitous dust. And the air is cool, nice and still. Overcast. A relief from the bright sun and heat of most of the days of this week. Possibly the rains are near. Have to keep praying hard. That it rains, that less people suffer from the hunger. I hear seed is being eaten, so we might be getting into a cycle of hunger. Or we shall wake up and do something about food security!

But it is a beautiful day, I am alive, and know it....

gug

Off with my Head!

For some reason, because I am gay, some people sincerely believe that I should die.

Want to 'cut off my head'. Duh. Paranoia? Here is from the His Excellency of Gambia, a tiny riverine country in West Africa.

President plans to kill off every single homosexual

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh says he will “cut off the head” of any homosexual caught in his country.

Monday 19 May 2008

Addressing supporters at the end of his meet the farmers tour here Sunday,

Jammeh also ordered any hotel or motel housing homosexuals to close down, adding that owners of such facilities would also be in trouble.

He said the Gambia was a country of believers, indicating that no sinful and immoral act as homosexual would be tolerated in the country.

He warned all homosexuals in the country to leave, noting that a legislation “stricter than those in Iran ” concerning the vice would be introduced soon.

President Jammeh said he was bent on making the Gambia one of the best countries to live in, adding that his government had spent over US$ 100 million towards the development of the country since 1994.

He said, however, that almost 98 per cent of the amount had gone to foreigners. Panapress .

Duh, double duh.

I am an African. Am also homosexual. Seems according to this leader of mine, I am no African because I am homosexual. Or I cannot be a homosexual because I am African?

Anyway, I am. Will hold that thought. In my head. The one which is supposed to be cut off!

A good morning to you all, Africans and all gay Africans.

GayUganda