Zimbabwe’s Gays
and Lesbians community celebrate Mugabe’s exit after he opposed them for 37
years
The
Gays and Lesbians community in Zimbabwe are thrilled by the resignation of
former president, Robert Mugabe. Recall that Mugabe in his 37 years in power,
strongly opposed all acts of homosexuality and even had fights with some
European governments because of his stand on homosexuality. One time, the 93
year old leader said homosexuals were worse than pigs and dogs.
Speaking to newsmen in Harare, the country’s capital,
the director of the Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ), Chesterfield
Samba, said the community received Mugabe’s resignation with jubilation and
that they hope his resignation will terminate the brutality and hatred they
have suffered from the government.
“We are ecstatic that the face of brutality, hate and impunity has
resigned. Mugabe, repeatedly, fuelled public prejudice against LGBTI
individuals through public statements that endorsed abuse of LGBTI people in
Zimbabwe. LGBTI people were subjected to abuse and harassment on account
of their real or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity and
expression.”he said
Samba said under Mugabe’s rule, the State had, in many
cases, been an active sponsor of homophobia by subjecting individuals suspected
of being gay or lesbian” to cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment”. “GALZ
welcomes the news of Mugabe’s resignation with much celebration and implores
the new President to uphold the rule of law, respect the constitution of
Zimbabwe, allow Zimbabweans to enjoy their freedoms particularly of expression
and association and to ensure that citizens do not live in fear of their
leaders. Mugabe, to us, represented a brutal system and the real work of
sanitizing this system continues.
In light of the resignation of Robert Mugabe, GALZ hopes
that the new government will commit to upholding Zimbabwe’s constitutional
obligations to protect the rights of all people, including LGBTI people.”
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