In north-west Kenya’s Kakuma refugee camp, lesbians live in fear. “We sleep in shifts, we protect ourselves,” Juliet tells me. “We don’t have any security who would protect us, we do it ourselves.” She is one of many LGBT Ugandans who has fled terrifying persecution in her home country, only to encounter further harassment, abuse and violence in Kenya.
Uganda has some of the worst legislation on — and social attitudes toward — lesbian and gay rights on the planet. In 2014, the nation’s Parliament passed an anti-homosexuality bill, which introduced the death penalty for homosexual encounters. It has since been declared “null and void” by a constitutional court, but there have been several attempts to reintroduce it since then.
The ugly, often deadly, anti-gay bigotry in Uganda is notorious amongst the international human rights community. The latest atrocity to befall gay Ugandan men will be reported on worldwide, but little has been written about the horrific abuse of lesbians here — which includes forced marriage and punishment rapes — nor their almost equally awful treatment in neighbouring nations.
I recently spoke to several of the 25 lesbians in Kakuma, via shaky Zoom calls and WhatsApp. They explained that LGBT refugees were segregated, in Block 13, meaning it is easy for other camp inmates to identify — and harass — them. Everyday activities such as gathering water, washing and shopping have become dangerous for these women because of the risk of further assaults. “We are in the same block as gay men,” Juliet, who is from Mbale in eastern Uganda, says, “and they mostly take the night shifts of watching over us and whenever we are attacked, they try to help us.” But they never feel safe.
Dire living conditions compound the issue. “Some of us sleep outside in the open space. There are not enough tents for everyone. We wake up early in the morning, we get water as soon as it is available, we do some cleaning, take a shower, feed the children.”
Juliet was forced into marriage when she was 17. Her husband worked in the United Arab Emirates and only spent one month a year with her. And so she became close to his sister, with whom she started a relationship. After her husband died in 2018, “my father-in-law found me with my sister-in-law and told the police. Even if the men stone you to death there will be no punishment for the men, only for us.”
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SubscribeGo on then. How many “T” Ugandans are there?
It’s zero, isn’t it?
Truly awful situation. More pressure from international community is needed and incentives for improvements.
More pressure from international community = neo-colonialism.
The best bet is for the Churches to work out a Third Way between the mistaken Western celebration of homosexuality and the brutal treaty of homosexual people in some African countries.
Not sure the West “celebrates” homosexuality; it just doesn’t discriminate against gays as it used too.
Surely a good thing?
I agree though that applying “international pressure” is largely counter-productive, and opens up the West to accusations of neo-colonialism and interference in the domestic affairs of a sovereign state.
On the positive side, one area where lesbians need not live in any fear at all is if they are head of the Metropolitan police.
Not only can you have Brazilian electricians shot on the Tube and lie about it, but you can also believe people like Carl Beech and ruin lives, you can have people like Wayne Couzens on the payroll raping and murdering women, and you can even tell the public to flag down a bus if they think one of your officers is the next Wayne Couzens.
You can do all of that and you just keep getting promoted, you get the CBE, you make Dame – and nothing’s ever your fault, no matter how bad.
Ain’t life grand? Makes up for Uganda a bit, doesn’t it?
Fear not, white saviour Bindel’s on the case.
I wish I knew what I could do that would make a difference.
Working remotely from Australia with a women’s group in Kenya for 10 years (visiting them 5 times) gave me a window on the difficulties facing women. I am not sure if any of the women in the organisation were gay but that was not, and isn’t, important at this organisation…it wasn’t something that had to be highlighted, in the same way being HIV positive was no one else’s business. A clinic is active to provide support, information or help, though. What is important is that the women in this area feel safe (mostly they don’t and travel in groups) and have choice (mostly they don’t and work so their daughters have more choices than they did, or do). Thanks for the article. It helps me remember the vital work that the organisation I was part of, is doing.