This past Monday, a law in Burkina Faso, proposed by the nation’s military junta, has banned homosexuality. The junta parliament approved the law, which is now waiting to be signed by President Ibrahim Traoré. According to BBC News, Traoré seized power in a military coup in 2022, claiming to be trying to free his nation from Western imperialism.
Advocate cites Justice Minister Edasso Rodrigue Bayala, who states that, “the law provides for a prison sentence ranging from two to five years and a fine … a person who (commits) homosexual practices … will appear before a judge and, in the event of a repeat offense, be deported …” With this extreme sentencing, it is currently unclear as to what “homosexual behavior” is defined as in the law—It may concern LGBTQ+ identity, or just applicable to same-sex relations.
While queerness has never been illegal in Burkina Faso until now, last year saw the implementation of anti-LGBTQ+ laws for the first time in the nation’s history, having joined several other African states in the crudely named, “Kill the Gays” legislation, calling for homosexuality to be punishable by death.
Sixty-five nations across the world have laws which criminalize homosexuality, and over half of those countries are in Africa—32 exactly with the recent laws in Burkina Faso. Although many of these laws are not always actively enforced, these laws remain in place from the European countries which previously had colonized these nations.
Many of these countries continue to criminalize homosexual relations under the guise of preventing the spread of HIV. However, according to AIDS Map, people in countries that criminalize homosexual activity are twice as likely to have HIV. This is often due to the lack of prevention and treatment resources.
While several countries, such as Burkina Faso, are continuing to tighten anti-LGBTQ+ laws, we have to remember that, on the other hand, there are many countries that are fully decriminalizing homosexuality. We can only hope that sometime soon, queer people in Burkina Faso and other anti-LGBTQ+ countries will be able to express themselves without fear of imprisonment or even death.
