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.

Elsewhere in Africa

Have to remind myself that it is not only Uganda.

Not a great thought for a very beautiful morning. And it is a very beautiful morning.

Yesterday, Sunday, it rained. Drizzled, actually. It has been a very dry spell for the last few months and the dust is everywhere. Dry, dusty, windy. And cold at night.

The drizzle dampened the air, removed much of the excess dust, and tied it down to earth. So the morning is realy fresh and lovely. Sun is as golden as ever. Yesterday we went out man watching. Strictly eye candy stuff.

Got across this story from Senegal. It is not nice, at all! But there, it happened. It seems to be significantly different from a similar one earlier in the year.

SHOCK AS GAY MAN IS EXHUMED FROM A “STRAIGHT ONLY” CEMETERY

Last Updated: July 7, 2009

By Jerina Chendze Messie (BTM French Reporter)

SENEGAL – 07 July 2009: The Senegalese gay community was shocked beyond words as the body of a gay man was exhumed from the local cemetery of Thiès, 70 km East of Dakar, dragged in the streets before being dropped in the courtyard of his family home by an angry mob who vowed that they will not have a gay man buried in their graveyard.

The corpse of Madièye Diallo, a gay man whose sexual orientation was well known in the area was, according to sources, exhumed for the second time by alleged homophobic community members who asked his family to bury him elsewhere.

Diallo’s friend who chose to remain anonymous said Diallo was an active member in the local branch of And Legeey, a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) organisation well known in the country and that he was in charge of organising events and meetings.

He added that the family does not want to say where they eventually buried Diallo for fear of more harassment.

The friend further explained that Diallo was an icon of gay people in Senegal after his photograph was largely disseminated by the media following an alleged gay marriage, which received huge media coverage.

Fearing for his life, he left the country and sought refuge in Mali.

He eventually came back, living between the two countries until he got sick and died.

“I spoke to his family and now they just want things to calm down before deciding what to do” the said.

Meanwhile four gay men have been arrested in Touba, 194 km East of Dakar, during the first week of June.

Just after their arrest, one of the most prominent religious leaders was heard on a local radio station saying that they [religious authorities] will do their own justice.

While no one knows the exact details of the men's arrests, a source known to Behind the Mask said people don’t want to get involved because they fear the power of religious leaders in that predominantly Muslim area.

And, this one is from Cameroon. Truly not only in Uganda

FREE EWANE! – GAY RIGHTS ACTIVISTS

Last Updated: July 3, 2009

By Jerina Chendze Messie (BTM French Reporter)

CAMEROON – 03 July 2009: A gay rights group in Cameroon is calling on the justice department to immediately drop charges against and release Yves Noe Ewane, arrested in May this year, allegedly for being gay.

Ewane was charged under sections 74 for criminal intention, 346 for gross indecency and 347 for homosexual conduct under the Cameroonian Penal Code, following a complaint filed against him by the mother of a supposed minor who accused Ewane of having sexual relations with his son.

Summoned to appear in court on 21 June the plaintiff and his mother did not pitch and the medical examination failed to prove that the boy was sodomised as alleged by his mother.

Alice Nkom, president of Association pour la Defense des Homosexuels (ADEFHO), an organisation that defends the rights of homosexuals in Cameroon, who is also representing Ewane says that the judge has everything he needs to close the drop the charges since “it appears that there is no witness or plaintiff.

In the absence of complainants, Ewane argued his innocence saying he had never had sexual relations with the boy.

Sebastien Mandeng, vice president of ADEFHO says Ewane is just a victim of stigmatisation since he was arrested last year for homosexual conduct and remanded in custody for six months at Douala New Bell Prison before being released.

“He has never been tried nor convicted and the case was dismissed for lack of evidence. He is a very sociable man who likes to entertain people at home but every time he is seen with somebody there are allegations of homosexuality. Just because he was accused once and although he was cleared, his neighbors still stigmatize him”, he said.

Ewane was sent to Douala New Bell Prison on the 19 May 2009 after being kept on police custody for three weeks at Douala Bonanjo Police Station. If found guilty, he will face a prison sentence of six months to five years and/or a fine of $50 to $500.

How we are loved. Senegal

'Gay man' disinterred in Senegal

The body of a man believed to be homosexual has twice been dug up from a Muslim cemetery in Senegal.

The man, in his 30s, was first buried on Saturday before residents of the western town of Thies dug up his body and left it near his grave, police say.

His family then reburied him, but he was once more exhumed by people who did not want him buried there. His body was dumped outside the family house.

Senegal outlaws homosexual acts but there is a tradition of effeminate men.

A police officer told the AFP news agency that the body was eventually buried away from the cemetery.

The state-owned Le Soleil newspaper reports that it was buried within the grounds of the family home.

"Goor-jiggen" (men-women) dress up as women, socialise with females and have long been tolerated in Senegal, a majority Muslim country. However, attitudes seem to be changing.

The AFP news agency reports that local imams, as well as some newspapers and radio stations, have denounced homosexuals after an appeals court last month overturned the conviction of nine people for homosexual acts.

They had been sentenced to eight years in jail after being found guilty of "indecent conduct and unnatural acts".

The men, who were part of an HIV/Aids group, were arrested in December at a flat in a suburb of the capital, Dakar.

In February 2008, the editor of a magazine in Senegal received death threats after publishing pictures claiming to depict a wedding ceremony between two men.

Good News from Senegal

Senegalese Gay Activists Freed

By Fid Thompson

Dakar

20 April 2009

Nine Senegalese men who had been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for homosexual acts were set free Monday after winning an appeal of their convictions. 

In a packed courtroom in downtown Dakar, the appeals court pardoned all nine defendants and overturned charges of committing unnatural acts and criminal conspiracy.

Biram Sassoum Sy, who led the defense team, says the men are completely cleared of any crime or wrongdoing and the case will not be pursued. When they were apprehended, arrested and sentenced, he says the law was broken at every step. The trial, he says, is invalid and they are free to go.

Most of the defendants worked for HIV/AIDS programs targeting men who have sex with men. They were arrested at the home of a prominent gay activist in December.

 

Sy says the police went to the defendant's house after neighbors tipped them off. The attorney says police arrested the men without a warrant and extorted a confession through bullying and harassment.

Senegalese law prohibits homosexual activity but requires that the suspect be caught in the act. A search warrant is also necessary if police are to enter a private home. Sy says the original judgment was hasty and emotional, and correct legal procedure was not followed.

The maximum penalty for homosexual activity is five years. The sentencing judge in this case added another three years for criminal conspiracy. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission in Cape Town said no other African country has handed down such a severe sentence.

 

Despite the positive outcome of the appeal, AIDS activists in Senegal are concerned about the effect the trial will have on HIV programs serving men who have sex with men.

Daouda Diouf, director of community-led HIV programs at Enda Tiers Monde - an international non-profit organization based in Dakar, says AIDS work with homosexuals will take time to return to the level it was at before. He says the trial has created a lot of fear and the people working with this community feel threatened. It will take time to build up trust again, he says, so they can conduct HIV/AIDS activities without fearing for their safety.

Diouf says that if HIV is not controlled in vulnerable groups like the homosexual community, it will be impossible to manage the HIV epidemic in Senegal. These men, he says, are key players in the country's fight against HIV.

Of Senegal, from IGLHRC

Senegal: Nine Men Contest Homophobic Judgment

 

 

Nine men who were sentenced to 8 years in jail last January, appeared at the Dakar Court of Appeal this morning, represented by five attorneys, to contest their judgment.

 

In their plea to overturn the ruling, the men's attorneys argued that the procedure presented technical irregularities contradicting the prescriptions of Article 45 of the Senegalese Code of Criminal Procedure, which determines that in a case of flagrante delicto like this one, there should be material proof of the accusations. However, the prosecution lacked such evidence in this case.

 

Lawyers for the nine men also argued that the procedure contravened Article 407 of the Senegalese Code of Criminal Procedure, since no specific complainant had filed criminal charges against the men, and there were irregularities regarding the time at which the men were arrested (after 10 p.m. at night – arrests can only take place between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.), the conditions in which they were arrested (at a residence therefore violating the victims' privacy, and without a warrant) and the absence of witnesses/informants.

 

The prosecution did not contest the defence's plea. The appeal took place after the court rejected the men's application for bail on Monday March 30, 2009.

 

Background

 

On December 19, 2008, police officers raided the apartment of Mr. Diadji Diouf, an important leader in the Senegalese lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, and arrested him and eight other men. Mr Diouf, who heads AIDES Senegal, an organization providing HIV prevention services to men who have sex with men (MSM), and his guests were taken to the SICAP Mbao police station where they were detained until December 24 before being transferred to the Maison D'arrêt et de détention de Rebeuss.

 

On January 8, 2009, the nine men appeared in court to respond to charges of criminal conspiracy and engaging in acts against the order of nature. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) was informed that lawyers for the defence had had limited access to case files and little time to prepare for the court hearing. The men were condemned to a sentence of 8 years in jail although the prosecutor had asked for a sentence of 5 years, which is the maximum penalty provided by Senegalese law in sodomy cases.

 

Under Article 3.913 of the Senegalese Penal Code, homosexual acts are punishable by imprisonment of between one and five years and a fine of 100,000 ($200) to 1,500,000 ($3,000) CFA francs.

Health leaders call on Senegal to release 9 gay men arrested (BTM)

I don’t think the sequence of these events was coincidence. But then, I just read the news. Can we legislate HIV out of existence, or is it the proverbial ostritch head in the sand?

gug

SENEGAL – 15 January 2009: The Society for Aids in Africa (SAA) and the International Aids Society (IAS) call on Senegalese government to immediately release and drop charges against 9 men sentenced recently for 8 years each in prison based on sexual orientation.

Among those arrested work towards providing critical HIV prevention, care and treatment services among men who have sex with men (MSM).

The organisations and other leading international and regional institutions partnered to organise a groundbreaking International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA) held in December last year in Dakar, Senegal.

At that conference, public health leaders, scientists, community and politicians all affirmed their support to meaningfully address HIV among MSM.

In closing at ICASA, IAS Executive Director Craig McClure said: "The unique partnership that has driven the HIV response has at its core the people living with HIV and the populations most vulnerable - women and youth, gay men and other men who have sex with men, sex workers and drug users. The communities most at risk and those living with the disease have shown us that the fight against HIV

is a fight for the human rights of all human beings."

Senegalese government officials, as hosts to this international gathering of 8000 HIV professionals, also publicly pledged their support to reducing HIV among sexual minorities during their speeches and presentations.

On 22December last year, just ten days after the ICASA conference, police officers raided apartment of an HIV prevention programme leader working with the Senegalese lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) community, and arrested him and eight other men. Last week the men appeared in court to respond to charges of "criminal conspiracy and engaging in acts against the order of nature" where they were sentenced to eight years in jail.

Under Article 3.913 of the Senegalese penal code, homosexual acts are punishable by imprisonment of between one and five years and a fine of 100,000 ($200) to 1,500,000 ($3,000) CFA francs.

SAA and IAS believe criminalising sexual orientation has never been shown to reduce the transmission of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV and Aids, and is an abuse of basic human rights.

From the perspective of science and sound public health policy, the SAA and IAS believe that all countries around the world must work respectfully with all communities of their population to stem the tide of inequality and to support disease prevention. Evidence shows us that criminalising and discriminating against any group of individuals serve to fuel the HIV and Aids epidemic by denying services and relevant prevention messages.

"The arrest of these men, based purely on their sexual orientation, represents a major setback for the Senegalese response to HIV, which is widely viewed as a model in Africa", said Joanna Mangueira, President of SAA.

According to UNAIDS, fewer than one in 20 men who have sex with men around the world has access to HIV prevention, treatment, and care - and even fewer in low-income settings like Senegal. Compared to the HIV testing rates of 63-85 percent seen among men who have sex with men in Australia, Europe, and North America, rates in this population in much of Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe are often under 20 percent.

As has been demonstrated in many different countries, reducing the social exclusion of gay and MSM communities through the promotion and protection of their human rights (including sexual rights and the right to health) is not only consistent with, but a prerequisite to good public health.

Once discriminatory policies are abolished and stigma and discrimination are confronted, country-based programmes can be put in place to encourage gay men and MSM to stay free of HIV infection, thus supporting national goals of reducing HIV burden.

News from Senegal, where the Africa wide HIV meeting was held

Senegal: Court Sentences Nine Men to

Heavy Jail Sentences for Sodomy

On December 19, 2008, police officers raided the apartment of Mr. Diadji Diouf, an important leader in the Senegalese lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, and arrested him and seven other men. Mr Diouf, who heads AIDES Senegal, an organization providing HIV prevention services to men who have sex with men (MSM), and his guests were taken to the SICAP Mbao police station where they were detained until December 24 before being transferred to the Maison D'arrêt et de détention de Rebeuss.

On January 8, 2008, the nine men appeared in court to respond to charges of criminal conspiracy and engaging in acts against the order of nature. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) was informed that lawyers for the defense had had limited access to case files and little time to prepare for the court hearing. The men were condemned to a sentence of 8 years in jail although the prosecutor had asked for a sentence of 5 years, which is the maximum penalty provided by Senegalese law in sodomy cases.

Under Article 3.913 of the Senegalese penal code, homosexual acts are punishable by imprisonment of between one and five years and a fine of 100,000 ($200) to 1,500,000 ($3,000) CFA francs. In February 2008, ten men and one woman were arrested in Dakar after a popular local magazine published photographs of a marriage ceremony between two Senegalese men. The publicity and arrests created tremendous public animosity toward LGBT people in Senegal. Statements such as "killing a homosexual is not a sin" and "they should all be well and truly eliminated from the face of the Earth!" appeared on websites. Many gay men and lesbians were attacked by mobs or driven from their homes. IGLHRC coordinated financial assistance for LGBT defenders and others at risk, and led an advocacy campaign demanding the detainees' release.

In the current case, IGLHRC is deeply concerned by what appears to be a violation of: a) the right to a free and fair trial, b) the right to privacy, and c) the right to freedom from discrimination. IGLHRC is working with local and international partners to find more information about the case and explore options for action.

Picked the article from BBC. Apparently, the sentence was harsher than it should have been. Reason, the guys arrested were members of an organisation for the prevention of HIV.

I am gay. And a member of organisation(s) for the prevention of HIV. What is ridiculous is the fact that, in Dec 2008, Senegal held an Africa wide meeting, ICASA, focused on HIV prevention. Apparently, it is okay to hold HIV prevention programme. But to do that for gay men, well, you will have to go to prison. And it is so bad that you will get a harsher than usual sentence. And in record time. Wow!

Here is the article from the BBC.

Senegal court jails nine gay men

Gay people say conditions are getting worse for them in Senegal

Nine gay men in Senegal have been sent to jail for "indecent conduct and unnatural acts".

Homosexual acts are illegal in Senegal but lawyers for the men said the sentence was the harshest ever handed down to gay men in the country.

The judge added three years to the maximum five-year sentence after ruling that the men were also members of a criminal organisation.

Most of them belonged to an association set up to fight HIV and Aids.

"This is the first time that the Senegalese legal system has handed down such a harsh sentence against gays," said Issa Diop, one of the men's four defence lawyers.

News from Senegal

Hi Leornado,

shit does happen on this continent of mine. Shit like the one below.

It can hurt. Cut to the bone. But that does not help. Yes, we can change it, bit by bit. But for now, we have to publicise. Show that it happens.

Here is the News.

Senegal jails Belgian, domestic helper for 'gay marriage': lawyer

Senegal has jailed a Belgian retiree and his male Senegalese domestic helper for two years for "homosexual marriage and acts against nature," their lawyer said Thursday.

Richard Lambot, 61, and Moustapha Gueye, 63, who wedded in Belgium -- where civil gay marriage is legal -- last month, were sentenced by the Dakar regional court on Augusut 21, said lawyer Seyni Ndione.

"To help Moustapha Gueye get papers to live in Belgium, Richard Lambot married him in July," Ndione said, after which they returned to Senegal -- a predominantly Muslim nation where homosexuality is frowned upon.

"This marriage was only intended to help Mr Gueye," the lawyer said, adding that a poorly conducted police investigation led the two to be accused of "acts against nature" at Lambot's home in a working-class part of Dakar.

Homosexuality in Senegal can lead to five years in prison and fines running up to 1.5 million CFA francs (2,300 euros, 3,380 dollars).

In February, five people were detained for several days, then freed without charge, after a symbolic wedding between two men near Dakar.

Police frees five held in Senegal gay wedding scandal

Five people detained this week in a probe in Senegal over alleged death threats against the editor of a magazine which ran an article on a homosexual wedding, have been freed, police said Thursday.

A source in the police criminal investigation division said the five were released on Wednesday evening.

Among the suspects is a Frenchman, said the same source.

"The release does not mean that they have no case to answer. It is only part of the investigations, the process is ongoing," she said adding that other suspects are being hunted down.

The pro-government Le Soleil on Thursday reported that among the alleged fugitives were a Ghanaian, an Ivorian and two Senegalese.

A police official said the five suspects had been questioned over "gross indecency and marriage against nature".

According to local media, the suspects were rounded up following death threats against the editor and a photographer for the magazine Icone, which published a story last week on a same-sex wedding.

The Icone story graphically illustrated with pictures of two men exchanging rings and several dozen guests whose faces were partially blackened.

Homosexuality is outlawed in Senegal, a majority Muslim country in west Africa.

Under Senegalese laws acts "against nature with an individual of the same sex" are punishable with a maximum penalty of five years in jail and a fine of between 100,000 CFA francs (150 euros, 225 dollars) to one million francs.

A Dakar-based pan-African human rights body RADDHO, has meantime expressed its concern at the "hatred of homosexuals" displayed through the country's public media.

The case is the start of "a disturbing rise in homophobia and hatred of homosexuals in public opinion (in Senegal)".

Gay Marriage

I have been thinking a lot about the gay wedding in Senegal.

Guess it is because our circumstances are so similar. Despite the fact that a continent divides us. And, yeah, I have been thinking of it relative to my situation.

I am a gay man. It is great that I have accepted that fact. I am a gay Ugandan, living and working in Uganda.
And I am a gay man that lives with his gay lover, in Uganda. And we have done that for the last seven years.

In some ways it seems like a dream. A beautiful dream for me. But there are things which we forget. We live with danger to such an extent that we have occasionally to be reminded that something lurks out there. That there are people who would see our love as something abominable. Yes, like my dear brother. (Met him since, was not able to discuss it with him.)

It was in 1999, late, that one of the local newspapers, New Vision, published a front page article of two gay Ugandans getting married. Not in Uganda, in London!
The usual furor, and hate speech followed. Yet it was notable that that was when our dear president (er, the current one), came out strongly homophobic, ordering the Criminal Investigation Department to arrest and imprison us.
There was fear in our community. I do remember it well.

Somehow, it fizzled out. Must say we were more closeted than we are at the moment. Maybe they did search for kuchus!

My partner and I have lived together for some time, but we cannot have any acknowledgement of the fact that we are a couple. Not by my relatives, who know that we are. Not by his relatives.
Sometimes it is frustrating. Like Sunday I attended a family gathering. Birthday party for my dad.
Typical African man, would not have acknowledged it but for the fact that seventy is a milestone, and he has not been very healthy the last couple of years. When he told me, and I told one of my sisters, a 'suprise' party was planned.
Not all could make it. Turned out to be a gathering of the grandchildren. He has 20, and counting.

I had to leave my partner home.

We talked about it. I wanted him there, since the old man knows. But my partner thought it would be 'unfair' to make him unhappy on his special day. And of course he is very sensitive to the fact that some of my brothers and sisters are maintaining a hostile silence.
Anyway, I went alone. But felt lonely in the mass of happy kids.
Felt I would like to be acknowledged that he is my family.
When will that ever be?

He would like a wedding. A real, wedding, with church and a kasiki etc.
Will that ever be?

Maybe it is wishful thinking. But I will dare to hope.

Last year, November, a couple, friends of ours invited us for their wedding in South Africa. A real live gay wedding.
We could not attend.
I wrote them a poem, but didnt send it.

Now, the wedding in Senegal has made me thoughtful. It is something to remember that we have love, and that we celebrate it in the face of a lot of opposition. Yes, it is good to love and be loved back. And we will acknowledge it to ourselves, even when we cannot do so before our society.

Here is the poem. I did not send it because I did not think it was good enough. Editing now seems not to improve it much, but here it is.

Two Equals, Now One United

A marriage of two equals

that day you celebrate-

two equals united one

mysterious unity thence.

Before were you one and one equal,

now you are two in one equal;

together, blessed, touched, consumated

May the flame of love that you united

burn ever stronger, ever longer, ever wider;

may its base grow wider, wiser;

may its light the doubters light,

and grace sceptics with awe 'n wonder

May you know love eternal

lookin' in one the other's eye.

May differences melt in communion,

as the love you share pours out sweetly.

Usikelele Afrika

land that your union blesses;

the blessings and shower of love

follow your steps and mis-steps,

united in love, now, forever more.

(c)GayUganda

Arrests of Gay Men in Senegal

LGBT Groups Express Outrage and Concern

Contact: Hossein Alizadeh, IGLHRC Communications Coordinator, 212-430-6016

(New York, Monday February 4, 2008)- In a letter to Senegalese Minister of Justice, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and PAN-Africa ILGA have demanded the immediate and unconditional release of up to 20 gay men believed to have been arrested on suspicion of homosexuality in Senegal in the past week.

At least 7 and perhaps as many as 20 gay men have been arrested in Dakar, the Senegalese capital, since the morning of Sunday 3 February after a popular local magazine, Icones, published photographs of a marriage ceremony between two Senegalese men. The wedding is believed to have taken place in a discrete location in Dakar more than a year-and-a-half ago. Sources report that the photographs were sold to the sensationalist magazine by the photographer for 1,500,000 ($3000) CFA francs. The arrests were reportedly undertaken upon the orders of Mr. Asane Ndoye, head of the Senegalese Police's Division of Criminal Investigation. It is unclear where the men and women are being held.

"Mass arrests of people simply because they are gay terrorize the entire community," said Paula Ettelbrick, IGLHRC's executive director. "The inhuman treatment of gay men and lesbians must stop. We call upon the world community to enforce international human rights law." The U.N. Human Rights Committee affirmed in its decision in Toonen v. Australia (1994) that existing protection against discrimination in Articles 2 and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) incorporates sexual orientation as a protected status.

"We are afraid for our lives, especially those of us shown in the photographs," said Jean R., a Senegalese gay activist who spoke to ILGA and IGLHRC from a hotel where he is seeking refuge. "Some of us have gone into hiding and others are fleeing the country."

Senegal is one of the few Francophone African countries that penalize homosexuality. Under Article 3.913 of the Senegalese penal code, homosexual acts are punishable by imprisonment of between one and five years and a fine of 100,000 ($200) to 1,500,000 ($3,000) CFA francs. While there are occasional arrests and convictions of gay men under the Article, social stigma and blackmail are the most prevalent abuses faced by gay men in the country.

"Many consider Senegal to be one of the most progressive African countries on the issue of homosexuality," said Joel Nana, IGLHRC's Program Associate for West Africa. "The government has included a commitment to fighting HIV among men who have sex with men in its national AIDS response plan since 2005. That's why we found these arrests to be very distressing."

Senegal has strong political and economic ties to a number of conservative Islamic governments and institutions, and will be hosting the summit of the Organization of Islamic Conference in March. The OIC has invested heavily in the rehabilitation of Dakar's infrastructure in preparation for the Summit.

Under the circumstances, IGLHRC and Pan-African ILGA expressed concern as to whether Senegal is well-suited to host the upcoming International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA), scheduled to take place in Dakar in December 2008.

"There will be no room for an open and inclusive discussion on the human rights dimensions of HIV in the face of such harassment," said Danilo da Silva, co-chair of Pan-African ILGA, a federation gathering over 40 lesbian and gay groups from all parts of Africa. "We expect more from a leading country like Senegal."

At Home

Seated at home.

He is leaning against me. Listening to a song in one of our mother-tongues on the TV.

The cd-player is on. Mozart. For some reason I like it in the background. Un-obstructive.

Cosy home life. Apparently.

It is. It has to be.

Today in the morning, I saw an email from an ILGA contact. On the far side of the continent, another couple had the same. Dakar, Senegal. They decided to go ahead and formalise their relationship in a marriage. A gay marriage.

They had it. Their wedding day.

They are happy. They were happy.

That is, until the pictures of their wedding bliss got into a local newspaper. It has turned, predictably into a national furor. A wedding. Two men getting married. And that moment of personal bliss turns into the nightmare of arrest and prosecution.

It doesn’t matter that those two guys love each other. It doesn’t matter that they have risked their all in the name of this love. It doesn’t matter that the occasion does not have any victim, or indeed, that the people who went out of their way did it in secret. What matters to the community, is that some mores have been broken, and that the community has gotten to know of it. So the outcry is, horror! Arrest them!

And, ridiculous as it seems, the press is announcing that the country’s highest ‘Criminal Investigation Body’ is doing its best to trace all of them, and arrest them.

Did I mention that we were cozy at home?

Yes. An idyllic time. Monday evening.

The weekend was hectic. Couple of parties that I attended. And new school term started today. Traffic jams.

Needed a rest today, and the evening was particularly beautiful. Calming, as the heat of the day melted into night and coolness.

Our forbidden love indeed. Aint we lucky to be able to share it?

I don’t think I am brave. A series of logical steps which I had to take, we had to make. Yet, though we do love each other, and are not harming anyone, our communities would throw off all other problems in the outrage of us celebrating our love. Like we celebrated seven years of living together. Guess we should be thankful for this celebrity status of our personal life.

Life is beautiful. I, we know that we risk. And we know that it may be life itself.

But, in the same breath, I look at what I would be without my lover. Is unhappiness in life a good bargain for having to conform?

I, we chose happiness. Of course it is no guarantee. The audacity of hope? Yes, we can still hope.

I hope that the guys who celebrated being together in Senegal have some peace. But apparently the full wrath of the law will descend on their poor heads. Because they love, they are condemned.

My, our love is precious. We shall celebrate it as we can, day to day, in the rising of the sun, and its beautiful setting. I have one life, and in it, I have been blessed with love.

GayUganda