Two men jailed after criticizing prime minister for not being anti-gay enough

In Senegal, Africa, two men have been jailed for “spreading false news” that the new prime minister there tolerates homosexuality.

Activist Bah Diakhate and Imam Cheikh Ahmed Tidiane Ndao were jailed for three months and fined the equivalent of $165 each.

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The pair were angered when Ousmane Sonko — recently elected prime minister after Senegal was convulsed by political turmoil — welcomed left-wing French politician Jean-Luc Mélenchon to the country.

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In a university appearance, Mélenchon expressed his support for same-sex marriage and was booed by students.

Homosexual acts are banned in the mostly Muslim West African nation and are punishable by up to five years in prison.

The two men were arrested after posting a video attacking Sonko for giving a platform to the pro-LGBTQ+ French politician.

In response to Mélenchon’s controversial remarks, Sonko said Western countries should show restraint when discussing social matters like LGBTQ+ rights, as their promotion could “lead to anti-Western sentiment” in Senegal and other majority-Muslim nations.

The new prime ministr said Senegal will continue to manage social issues like homosexuality as it sees fit and in accordance with its own socio-cultural norms, and not be unduly influenced by their former colonial power or other outside influences.

The new prime minister described homosexuality as “not accepted, but tolerated” in Senegal, according to the BBC.

Sonko was appointed prime minister in April after his ally Bassirou Diomaye was elected president following months of political turmoil when the outgoing Senegal president tried to postpone the country’s election.

The two men were freed from prison not long before the vote in a blanket amnesty for the political opposition. Sonko and Diomaye campaigned on an Afrocentric and nationalist agenda, promising voters they would reset Senegal’s relationship with France.

Sub-Saharan Africa has been roiled by anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment over the last several years as countries like Uganda have imposed draconian punishments for homosexual behavior.

While that East African nation and others seeking to erase LGBTQ+ identity have accused “degenerate” Western countries of undue influence, far-right U.S. organizations like the Fellowship Foundation have been instrumental in writing and promoting anti-LGBTQ+ legislation like Uganda’s Kill the Gays law. The 2023 law punishes homosexuality and its “promotion” with prison time and death.

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