Two members of a Zimbabwe gay rights association have been arrested after posting a letter in their office, which criticised President Robert Mugabe's opposition to homosexuality. The letter was from Willie Lewis Brown, the former mayor of San Francisco. The Guardian reports Ellen Chadehama, 34, and Ingatius Mhambi, 38, are employees of the Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe organisation. They were arrested on allegations under Zimbabwe's censorship laws. BBC reports they have been charged with possession of pornographic material, but police want to add a charge of insulting the president. Mugabe has previously described same-sex partners as "lower than dogs and pigs", but arrests of gay people are reportedly rare in the African nation. Homosexuality is illegal in most African countries. Last week in Malawi, a judge sentenced a gay couple to 14 years in jail, working hard labour, after they celebrated their engagement. Uganda is considering a bill under which homosexuals could be sentenced to life and "repeat offenders" could be executed. South Africa is the only African country that recognises gay rights, but there has been a tide of 'corrective' gang rape of lesbians. This was highlighted by the brutal rape and murder of football star and equality rights campaigner Eudy Simelane in Johannesburg last year.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 26th May 2010 - 10:11am