Date: Fri, 13 Oct 95 11:11 GMT+0200 From: stevevb@harare.iafrica.com (Stephen Van Breda) Subject: SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND THE ZIMBABWEAN GOVERNMENT 13th October 1995. SEXUAL ORIENTATION & THE ZIMBABWE GOVERNMENT Introduction ZANU PF headed by Robert G. Mugabe has been in power in Zimbabwe since Independence in 1980. While it cannot be denied that his leadership has in many ways tried to rectify the wrongs committed during the Colonial era, his overall record of human rights is less than exemplary. The current government has become increasingly autocratic in its decisions and allegations of corruption and intimidation are now so rife that they have become common place. However, never before has Mr. Mugabe or his government been so blatantly hostile to a minority group especially in the face of international censure. This is a worrying development and bodes ill for the future of this multi-racial/cultural/tribal/religious country. Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) Under the Roman Dutch law existing in this country sodomy and some homosexual acts are illegal. Prior to 1994 sexual orientation, other than heterosexual, was not considered a fit topic of discussion or was the subject of various derogatory jokes. GALZ was first established in 1989 as a support group for the homosexual and lesbian community. Its aims were to try to provide services to the gay community such as counselling, access to literature and films, AIDS awareness, providing opportunities for the community to meet and to try to better the conditions under which they are forced to live. GALZ ultimately wanted to try to educate the public about the realities of gay life and explode some of the more damaging myths concerning homosexuals and lesbians. Reactions Up until 1994 there was no official public reaction to the formation of GALZ. In fact there existed a relative truce with the government - an understanding that neither party would push the other too far. There were a few raids on the founder member's houses and materials were confiscated, never to be returned, but by and large it was a case of live and let live. GALZ flourished as a social club with its functions being well attended and membership growing. In January 1994 GALZ placed a rather ambiguous (so as not to disrupt the status quo) advertisement in The Daily Gazette advertising its counselling services. A slightly more observant reporter decided to investigate where the advertisement had originated and "the cat was out of the bag". The Minister of Home Affairs, Mr D. Dabengwa, was outraged; he subsequently stated with great conviction that "We are going to arrest them. It is illegal in this country". (The Daily Gazette, 24 January 1994) This led to a surprisingly volatile debate on the issue of gay life in Zimbabwe; ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous; as is exemplified by one misinformed citizen who stated in the Manica Post that "The spread of the killer disease AIDS across the globe has been speeded up by gays and lesbians. This is a fact". The debate raged from January 1994 until mid 1994 when suddenly all media went quiet on the subject. Rumour has it that the government, not liking the direction in which the subject was going, placed an embargo on the reporting of any gay related subject. As "freedom of the press" has always tended to be academic in Zimbabwe, this effectively shut down all information on the subject. It is alleged that a high level memorandum was circulated in the ZBC (Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation) forbidding any discussion or reference to gay issues on either radio or television programmes. The silence was deafening. Zimbabwe International Book Fair (ZIBF) GALZ, having established itself as a functioning organisation, decided late 1994 that it should try to fulfil its obligations to its members in bettering conditions within Zimbabwe - and what better way than to advertise its existence at the Book Fair. GALZ, assuming that they had a right as a legal organisation and considering that the theme of the 1995 Book Fair was Human Rights & Justice, applied to the trustees for a stand at the Fair. GALZ was first refused admission but after persistent effort was allowed to participate and was granted a stand. On 24 July 1995 the government responded to GALZ's initiative by demanding that the ZIBF withdraw GALZ from the fair as "... the Zimbabwean Society and Government do not accept the public display of homosexual literature and material" and "In the interest of continued cooperation with Government, please withdraw the participation of GALZ at this public event" (Letter from Mr. B. Chakaodza, Director of Information, 24 July 1995). Some four days later, on 28 July 1995, the ZIBF complied with the demand of the government and in a statement issued by Ms. T. Mbanga withdrew GALZ's permission. However ZIBF were at pains to point out that "... its decision in no way compromises its commitment to freedom of expression ...". (ZIBF Statement, 28 July 1995) International Community The International Community's reaction was gratifyingly quick. ZIBF was resoundingly condemned for its decision to compromise the values they were supposed to be propounding and the Zimbabwe Government for its abuse of power in denying an organisation's legal right to freedom of expression. Despite the negative reactions ZIBF denied GALZ participation in the Book Fair. On 1 August 1995 the Fair was opened by Mr. R. Mugabe where he made his views on gays clearly known : "I find it extremely outrageous and repugnant to my human conscience that such immoral and revulsive organisations, like those of homosexuals, who offend both against the law of nature and the morals of religious beliefs espoused by our society should have any advocates in our midst and even else where in the world" he went on to say : "If we accept homosexuality as a right, as is being argued by the association of sodomists and sexual perverts, what moral fibre shall our society ever have to deny organised drug addicts or even those given to bestiality, the rights they might claim and allege they posses under the rubrics of "individual freedom" and "human rights", including the freedom of the Press to write, publish and publicise their literature on them ?" finally stating that : "... denial of their alleged right to have sex in public is a violation of their human rights ... Is any sane government which is a protector of society's moral values expected to countenance their accessions ?" (The Herald, 2 Aug 1995) Mr. Mugabe put it much more clearly on 2 August 1995 when he was reported by The New York Times International as bluntly stating : "I don't believe they (homosexuals and lesbians) have any rights at all". Outrage The response was immediate. Gay and Lesbian organisations world wide were outraged by Mr. Mugabe's statements and the International Community was plainly disturbed by the bigoted attitude of Zimbabwe's leader. Mr. B. Frank and Ms. M. Waters, members of the Congress of the United States - House of Representatives, sent a letter including seventy other signatories from the American Congress pointing out that "When individuals are mistreated by government because of some basic characteristic of their nature, human rights are violated" and requesting that he "... re-examine this issue ...". (Letter from Mr. Frank, Ms. Waters 3 August 1995) Mr. Mugabe's response : "Let the Americans keep their sodomy, bestiality, stupid and foolish ways to themselves. Keep those out of Zimbabwe. We do not want those kinds of behaviour in our country." Furthermore "We will not accept them here at all. So gays let them be gay in the United States, Europe and elsewhere, they shall be sad people here". (Excerpt from his speech to the Zanu PF Woman's League, 18 August 1995) Meanwhile, the local papers within Zimbabwe were having a field day. The government run newspapers, notably The Herald, The Sunday Mail and the Manica Post, blindly supported Mr. Mugabe's stand and published numerous letters from the public commending Mr. Mugabe's courageous actions with the occasional letter against his views been thrown in to appear unbiased. The Financial Gazette was not so intimidated and presented refreshingly varied view points on both GALZ and gay rights within Zimbabwe. The International gay and lesbian associations along with some human rights organisations moved into high gear and organised picketing of Zimbabwe embassies, commissions, Mr. Mugabe's trip to South Africa as well as writing letters of protest to Mr. Mugabe and the Zimbabwe government. Mr. Mugabe's reactions ranged from insulting : "It degrades human dignity. It's unnatural and there is no question of ever allowing these people to behave worse than dogs and pigs". (African News, 18 August 1995) to the irrelevant : "The reply to those against my stance on homosexuality is: Can they prove to me that they can get pregnant ?". (The Sunday Mail, 26 August 1995) Conclusion The International Community has been wonderful in the support of a beleaguered minority in a foreign country. However it is frightening that in this day and age such open discrimination and abuse of both power and human rights can be allowed to continue with such ease. We can only hope that, when the glare of the international limelight turns to another topic, the homosexual and lesbian community of Zimbabwe will not suffer horrific reprisals for daring to want equality. _____________________________________________________________________________ |Stephen M Van Breda |P O Box 544 |Mutare, Zimbabwe Men must endure | Their going hence, even as their coming hither: | Ripeness is all. |Tel/Fax (263)(20)61065 (Edgar : King Lear) _____________________________________________________________________________