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Just as we here at Advocates For Youth and AmplifyYourVoice.org launch the advocacy website StandForUganda.org against the new and deadly anti-homosexuality legislation in Uganda, another incident has occured just across the border in Kenya.
As the video above depicts, 5 men were arrested in the resort town of Mtwapa in Kenya as they attempted to perform a gay marriage. The BBC described an angry mob that stormed the place, beat 2 of the men and handed them all to the police. According to the BBC:
The other three men were handed to the police by members of the public; two of them had reportedly been beaten.Homosexuality is illegal in Kenya but arrests are extremely rare.
The wedding was reportedly due to take place at a private villa in the resort, but locals heard of the plans and alerted the police, who raided a house and arrested the men.
'Repugnant' behaviour
"We are grateful to the public for alerting the police. They should continue co-operating with the police to arrest more," Mr Matundura said.
"It is an offence, an unnatural offence, and also their behaviour is repugnant to the morality of the people."
..."We will move swiftly and close down bars which condone gays, lesbians, prostitution and drug abuse in their premises," Mr Matundura added.
A member of a Kenyan gay rights organisation condemned the arrests and said it had appealed to the Human Rights Commission to step in.
But the marriage allegedly planned was condemned by Muslim and Christian clerics.
"We cannot allow these young boys to ruin their future through homosexuality," Sheikh Ali Hussein of the Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya told AFP.
It was heartbreaking to see in the video one of the men covering his face to avoid being seen by the news and another man holding on to the door handles of the police station has the cop forced him out into the public. These men were clearly more afraid of the angry crowd that had assembled outside of the police station even more than the police since that crowd had earlier ambused them with the intention of lynching them. I have to also admit that I am extremely concerned with the Kenyan authorities and their need to "undergo a medical examination before we charge [these men] with homosexuality" because that is not only a violation of their bodies but also seems to make them vulnerable for abuse. These men are still awaiting trial since homosexuality is illegal in Kenya but as of now that consequences of this charge is not quite clear. We can only hope that it will not be as severe as Uganda where homosexuals can now be punished with the death penalty for homosexuality.District officer George Matandura said two of the men had been found with wedding rings, attempting to get married, in Kikambala beach resort.
Crowds gathered outside the police station where the men were taken in protest at the presence of alleged homosexuals.
The district officer said the five, aged between 20 and 35, would "undergo a medical examination before we charge them with homosexuality," the AFP news agency reported.
It is also quite alarming to see the crowd and their apparent rejoicing at these men being arrested and prosecuted. I definitely believe in the autonomy of other nations and their rights to determine their own standards and legislation but I not believe that this should be at the expense of human rights. Although this may seem overly interventionist, I do belive that we as Americans and simply as other humans who also feel sexuality, shame and suffering to come to the aid of these people and to do what we can to end their unjust treatment. I do not think that this is about bleeding heart liberal politics, this is about the clear suffering of other individuals and you can clearly see them being dragged out of a building and towards certain punishment and lifelong stigma (and most likely worse consequences). Even though our country is still struggling with how to treat gender and sexual minorities with respect and dignity and we could be called hypocritical, that does not absolve us from the responsibilities of adocating human rights. We still have a responsibility to approach this situation with action, strongly monitor how it develops and how these men are treated.
I would like to urge all of you reading this to join StandForUganda.org because if we can put pressure on Obama to react to this virulent homophobia in Uganda it may set a precedent. We can also put pressure on the Human Rights Commission by writing them an email to let them know that we have heard about this situation in Kenya and that we are hoping they will work hard on it.
