By Nancy Akol
CAIRO-Egyptian authorities have so far arrested 59 people in what observers say is a massive crackdown on gays in the country.It all started on September 22, when revelers at a concert performed by Mashrou Leila, a Lebanese group, waived LGBT pride flags. This promoted the authorities to descend on them like they were criminals.
Hamed Sinno, the lead singer of the band is openly gay. The concert attracted several members of the LGBT community in a country known for varying degrees of Islamic conservatism. The authorities charged the arrested people with promoting “debauchery.”
Since 2013, 232 people have been detained by the authorities.The mainstream media has also been accused of running anti-LGBT messages.
In response to the arrests, the band issued a statement, “we denounce the demonization and prosecution of victimless acts between consenting adults.” The United States one of Egypt’s main allies condemned the arrests in a veiled statement.
“The US is concerned by reports of detentions and arrests of LGBTI persons in Egypt,” State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement.
Gays find resistance in most of Africa, because of cultural sensibilities within the continent. In Islamic countries, LGBTs find it difficult to exist because of Islamic law which does not recognize such sexual orientations.
