Burkina Faso moves towards criminalising homosexuality

Burkina Faso is the latest African nation set to criminalise consensual same-sex acts.

While same-sex marriages are forbidden, homosexuality has never been classified as illegal in the West African country until now.

Last week (10 July), following a Cabinet meeting of the ruling junta, Justice Minister Edasso Rodrigue Bayala said homosexual relations would be prohibited and made a punishable offence. He gave no further details.

The military seized power in 2022 and any new legislation still needs to be passed by the military-controlled parliament and signed off by junta leader Ibrahim Traoré. 

“Henceforth, homosexuality and associated practices will be punished by the law,” Bayala said, news agency AFP reported.

The move follows a trend of African nations moving to crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights by enacting discriminatory legislation, with queer people jailed or even facing the death penalty.

The National Consultative Commission on Human Rights condemned the move, saying: “We are all equal in dignity and rights. In Burkina Faso, thousands of people suffer from prejudice and injustice every day. We must take action.

“Discrimination weakens our society and divides our communities. Every individual deserves to live without fear of being judged or excluded. Together we can change mind-sets. We must educate, raise awareness and encourage respect for diversity.”

Gonta Alida Henriette, the president of Burkina Faso’s national commission for human rights, said making homosexuality illegal “would be the greatest violation of human rights and impact hundreds of thousands of people”.

Cameroonian lawyer and human rights and LGBTQ+ activist Alice Nkom asked: “Why politicise a privacy matter among consenting adults while making it a crucial topic for Africa?” the Washington Blade reported. “I answer you: Stop spying on your neighbour for the wrong reasons.

“Mind your own life and, if you care about your neighbour, worry about their health, if water is coming out of the tap, if there is electricity in the house, or food to feed their children.

“Why are they prioritising the issue of saying no to homosexuality in Africa instead of no wars or armed conflict in Africa, no poverty in Africa, no hunger in Africa, no misery in Africa? We should stop being distracted by topics that take away nothing and add nothing to our lives.”