Two employees of Hivos-partner GALZ arrested
Last Friday Zimbabwean police arrested two members, Ellen Chadehama, and Ingatius Mhambi, of the gay organisation and Hivos partner Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ). This was after they posted a letter in their office from former Mayor Willie Lewis Brown of San Francisco criticising the Zimbabwean president's Mugabe’s resistance to homosexuality. Hivos is deeply concerned about the growing intolerance towards gays and lesbians in Zimbabwe.
Confiscating "incriminating" material
On May 21 the Zimbabwean police came to the office of GALZ with a search warrant. According to police, ‘the letter undermines the authority of the president.’ The letter is was confiscated. The police also took several documents and computers. Ellen and Ignatius were arrested on allegations under Zimbabwe's censorship laws.
Reasonable freedom
Marijke Haanraadts, coordinator of the
LGBT program of capacity building at Hivos, is startled: "Particularly in Zimbabwe an organization like GALZ could do their work in reasonable freedom. GALZ even proposed a contribution to the new constitution.’
Haanraadts underlined that there is no aggressive homophobia in Zimbabwe, as opposed to countries like Uganda and Kenya. ‘Yes, the gays and lesbians are still in the closet and also have to deal with social exclusion, but
GALZ was always accepted. Arrests of homosexuals are very rare. But now it seems like this is going to change in Zimbabwe.’ According to Haanraadts this is why the arrest of the two employees of GALZ is shocking.
A new wave of aggressive homophobia
This new aggression seems to be connected to a wave of aggressive homophobia in Africa. Recently a judge in Malawi sentenced a gay couple for 14 years imprisonment because they planned to marry each other and lawmakers are considering an anti-gay bill in Uganda.
Last week Haanraadts stayed in Africa. She talked with partners about the new wave of aggressive homophobia. Many of them believe that this is strongly fueled by evangelical churches. These churches receive funding from their American brother churches and they would like their conservative agenda in Africa realized. Haanraadts continues: "And of course it is also true that homophobic messages falls on fertile ground in Africa. A common argument is that homosexuality is ‘unafrican’ And President Mugabe calling homosexuals ‘lower than dogs and pigs’ says enough.
The two will remain in jail until Wednesday.
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