By Walikuzu Solarin
Suh Edwin, who has been writing and
clamouring for the human rights of homosexuals in Cameroon using his blog, www.suhedwinsblog.com, is
said to have received anonymous calls and text messages calling on him to stop
writing and advocating for the rights of gays in Cameroon or face the
consequences. The anonymous calls and text messages threatened to take away his
life and that of his adopted kids if he does
not stop his writings and advocacy for gay rights.
Suh Ediwn had fled the country over two years ago after fearing for his life when
he found out that he was in danger because of his gay rights activities.
However, he did not stop after going into hiding and has continued to receive
similar threats and reports say the threats have intensified and are more sinister
this time around. It is believed that the threats have intensified because of
the fact that he has been westernised and the perpetrators believe if he
returns home his gay rights activism will take a different dimension.
“All men and women have a right to live
their lives in the best possible manner they deem fit and deserve to be
respected for who they are. Human dignity and respect is undermined when we
persecute others for their sexual orientation out of bigotry and intolerance.
Our individualism and uniqueness accords nature its rhythm and symphony that
symbolises the beauty in nature and since homosexual lifestyle poses no threat
nor danger to others, it is sheer hypocrisy, ignorance and undue intolerance
for innocuous nuances of those we perceive as different from us, to be
criminalised or worse still, make them object of hate-attack,” Suh says in one
of the articles on his blog.
While homosexuality is illegal in
Cameroon with a maximum sentence of five years in jail, there is also
widespread homophobia.
It would be recalled that a Cameroonian
journalist and gay rights activist, Eric Ohena Lembembe, was on Monday 15 July
2013 found murdered in his home in Yaounde.
He was the Executive Director of CAMFAIDS, a human rights organisation
working to protect the rights of sexual minorities in Cameroon.
Because of the spate of homophobic
attacks in Cameroon, there was strong speculation that Eric's death was
connected to his sexual orientation and related activism.
Lembembe’s murder came on the heels of other
anti-gay violence including the arson attack on the office of Alternatives
Cameroun, an organisation fighting for the rights of gays, by unknown
assailants. The office of Barrister Michel Togue, a human rights lawyer, was
also reported broken into and documents stolen. Both Togue and legal advocate, Barrister
Alice Nkom, have received repeated death threats for their defense of homosexual
individuals in the courts.
Following Lembembe’s murder, other
Cameroonian gay rights activists, visibly shaken, scared and frightened, were
not only shocked by the fact that they had lost a friend and colleague in this
brutal manner, but also by the possibility that they might soon be a target.
While some of the activists reportedly
went underground, others resorted to tone down their activism or operate from
home instead of in public places where they might be associated with anti-gay
rights activities. A climate of fear has since enveloped the gay rights activism
in Cameroon since Lembembe’s death.
But this did not intimidate some of the
activists like Suh Edwin who continued to exert pressure on the government to
bring the perpetrators to justice even after having gone underground.
While Eric Lembembe was buried in
Yaounde on 3 August 2013 with his funeral attended by United States ambassador,
the United Kingdom's High Commissioner and the European Union's programme
director for Cameroon, Barrister Alice Nkom, his lawyer, says there has been no
credible effort to investigate Lembembe’s death or collect the elements
necessary for a good investigation.
But Communication Minister, Issa
Tchiroma Bakary, said “there is no conspiracy of state, nor any social plot in
Cameroon, which is directed toward homosexuals. Many homosexuals live and move
freely in Cameroon without being beaten or suffering punishment.”
Meanwhile, some people have been jailed
in Cameroon for homosexual activity. The most recent is that of Joseph Ombga
and another underage youth, who were jailed for homosexual charges. Ombga was
handed a two-year jail term while the underage youth had a suspended one-year
jail sentence.
Ombga was arrested at his home in August
2011 and had been charged with sex with a minor after he was arrested in the
company of the youth to whom he wanted to sell a porn video, his lawyers said.
Another case is that
of Jean-Claude Roger Mbede, who was arrested by security forces for sending SMS
messages to a male acquaintance and sentenced to three years' imprisonment.
Several other cases abound.
When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa
No comments:
Post a Comment