Category: Central Africa
Cameroon prepares for annual Human Rights Defender Day
Human rights activists in Cameroon set aside each July 15 as Human Rights Defender Day, a time to protest the violence and other violations they face [...]
Will Cameroon follow Gabon by repealing anti-gay law?
The LGBT community in Cameroon cheered when the parliament in neighboring Gabon voted to repeal its anti-homosexuality law. But many sectors of Camero [...]
Gabon is on the brink of repealing its anti-gay law
The central African nation of Gabon is just one signature away from repealing the anti-homosexuality law that it enacted a year ago. From t [...]
Gabon lawmakers seek to decriminalize homosexuality
Legislators in Gabon took the first step yesterday toward repealing the central African nation's anti-gay law, which had been enacted just a year ago. [...]
Cameroon: For once, father defends his gay son
Here's what often happens in Cameroon when a family learns their son is gay: They throw him out of the family home, cheered on by homophobic neighbors [...]
Cameroon: Four gay men arrested, beaten in Kekem
Police in the western region of Cameroon arrested four men on Tuesday who were beaten until they acknowledged that they were gay. From the [...]
Prominent citizens unite to combat abuse of LGBTI Cameroonians
Two of Cameroon's most prominent LGBTI advocacy groups have merged two projects that help victims of homophobia through the influence of prominent cit [...]
Cameroon: Charges dropped against 53 arrested in Bafoussam
Charges have been dropped against 53 members of the LGBTI community in western Cameroon who were arrested last month for violating Covid-19 regulation [...]
Covid-19 in Cameroon: Human rights defenders adopt new strategies
During the Covid-19 health crisis, human rights defenders need to adjust their strategies for preventing and responding to homophobic and transphobic [...]
Cameroon: Rising tide of anti-LGBTI violence
The latest report on homophobic and transphobic violence in Cameroon paints a grim picture of a rising tide of violence against LGBTI Cameroonians, bu [...]
LGBTI in Cameroon: 50 arrested on Covid-19 charges
Police arrested 50 LGBTI people who gathered on May 17 in Bafoussam, western Cameroon, to learn about Covid-19 and to celebrate progress in internatio [...]
IDAHOBIT in Cameroon: Amid Covid-19 crisis, activists demand LGBTI rights
Despite the global health crisis, LGBTI activists in Cameroon figured out how to celebrate IDAHOBIT (International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia [...]
After Cameroon murder: ‘We condemn the prejudiced reporting on homosexuality’
Human rights organizations in Cameroon are protesting a news video that tied a Douala man's murder to his reported homosexuality. From the [...]
Cameroon: Local chief expels four anti-AIDS activists
Four young adults in eastern Cameroon were thrown out of their homes after their work at an anti-AIDS training session came to light. From [...]
Because I’m trans, I live in the shadows in Cameroon
In Cameroon and many other African countries, transgender people encounter curiosity but also hostility when they appear in public. This is the story [...]
Alternatives-Cameroon expands to the nation’s capital
The highly regarded LGBTI advocacy group Alternatives-Cameroon has expanded its work into Yaoundé from its Douala base. From the African Hu [...]
Cameroon family evicts trans daughter who loves men
A young transgender activist in Cameroon has been evicted from her family home because of her gender identity. She is now homeless and needs help. [...]
New shelter for victims of anti-gay violence and bias in Cameroon
The LGBTI advocacy group Camfaids has secured funding and a site to reopen its shelter for victims of anti-LGBTI violence and discrimination. [...]
Cameroon: Parents evict young lesbian, but she’s not alone
So far, the new year has been a time of difficult revelations for Lina, a 20-year-old lesbian living with her family in Yaoundé, Cameroon. [...]
Cameroon: Veteran gay-rights activist Desmond Sone dies of lung ailment
Gay rights activists are mourning the death of Desmond Sone Mbecho, a veteran of the struggle for LGBT rights in Cameroon. From the African H [...]
Anti-gay violence remains a danger in Africa and worldwide
Year in review: Despite signs of progress, 2019 remained a dangerous time for LGBTQ people in Africa and worldwide. In the United S [...]
U.S. ambassadors seek repeal of 69 nations’ anti-gay laws
U.S. ambassadors are promoting LGBTQ rights worldwide even as gay-rights activists blast the Trump administration for anti-LGBTQ domestic policies. [...]
Tally of nations where it’s a crime to be gay rises to 73
The central African nation of Gabon has adopted a law against same-sex sexual relations, running counter to the general trend of countries overturning [...]
Camfaids wins funds to reopen LGBTI safe house in Cameroon
The LGBTI advocacy group Camfaids has secured funds to reopen its safe house in Cameroon even though Camfaids has not yet found a suitable new site fo [...]
Cameroon: Money runs out; LGBTI safe house closes
The LGBTI advocacy group Camfaids has run out of funds to keep its safe house open in Cameroon. From the African Human Rights Media Network [...]
Cameroon: Burglary and threatened eviction of suspected lesbian
The apartment of a lesbian rights activist in Cameroon was burglarized last month after a disgruntled neighbor accused her of being too masculine. Her [...]
Cameroon’s Unity human rights watchdog project expands
Cameroon's LGBTI rights watchdog group is adding an advocacy office and getting a new logo. From the African Human Rights Media Network [...]
Cameroon: Police probe victims of homophobic assault
Participants in a health rights training session in Yaoundé, Cameroon, were violently assaulted late last month by anti-LGBT assailants. Police respon [...]
We freed 3 gay men from prison
Gay rights activists and donors have freed the last three prisoners serving sentences for homosexuality in northern Cameroon. From the Africa [...]
Cameroon: You’re gay? No more school for you!
Next month two young gay men in Cameroon planned to resume training for a human resources career, but they can't. The reason: Their parents found out [...]
Cameroon: Death of LGBTI activist Lambert Lamba
With the death of activist Marc Lambert Lamba, Cameroon lost a pioneer in the fight against anti-LGBTI violence. From the African Human Right [...]
Donors, activists free gay man from Cameroon prison
With help from generous donors, an imprisoned gay man was set free last week in Cameroon, ending his three-year sentence for homosexuality. -- [...]
Cameroon: Trans people form their own advocacy network
The new TransAfrican Independent Network in Cameroon is working to confront transphobia and empower transgender people. From the African Human [...]
Cameroon: Trans leader in hiding after transphobic attack
A leader of Cameroon's transgender community is recuperating from a transphobic attack that almost killed her. From the African Human Right [...]
Cameroon man evicts sister over fear that she’s a lesbian
Lesbophobia breaks apart a family in Cameroon; a sister is left homeless. From the African Human Rights Media Network By Steeves [...]
Cameroon: Assaults, rape, death threats over lesbian affair
In April, when a Cameroonian man learned that his common-law wife was attracted to women, he assaulted her, raped her lover and threatened to kill th [...]
Dramatic increase in violence against LGBT people in Cameroon
The 2018 report on violence against LGBT people in Cameroon shows a sharp and shameful increase. This alarming situation is due to widespread ignoranc [...]
Cameroon university blocks career of LGBTI activist
Officials at the University of Yaoundé II in Cameroon have blocked the academic career of a mature student known as Kundy (a pseudonym) because of his [...]
Cameroon death threats: 2 gay lovers outed by each other
A lovers' quarrel last month led to death threats, a knife attack, a closeted pastor losing his job, and his lover fleeing for his life. Fr [...]
Vandals hit north Cameroon group fighting for gay rights
Northern Cameroon's only gay-rights advocacy group is seeking help with beefing up security after its headquarters was vandalized last week. [...]
Cameroon: Lesbian athlete ousted, living in fear
Barred from playing pro football (soccer) in Cameroon because she is a lesbian, Stenie is worried about her safety as she considers making a formal co [...]
Cameroon: Crowd kills ‘man of God’ caught in the act
A pious shopkeeper in northern Cameroon was caught having sex with his 17-year-old male lover. Outraged, his neighbors killed him in the town's centra [...]
Cameroon: Youths disrupt Pride, burn advocacy office
An attack by anti-gay youths shut down a gay advocacy organization and forced the cancellation of Saturday's planned gay Pride celebration and anti-AI [...]
Estranged dad seizes kids from lesbian mom in Cameroon
The long-absent father of two young children recently took them away from their lesbian mother after threatening to send her to prison for her sexual [...]
Cameroon: Homophobia derails a pro sports career
Because of public pressure and fear of lesbians, a star athlete is barred from every football (soccer) club in Cameroon. Now she's trying to get back [...]
List of alleged homosexuals endangers 82 in Cameroon
In Cameroon, a new list of people accused of being homosexuals has put 82 people's lives and careers at risk. From the African Human Rights Media N [...]
Battered and slashed, gay man seeks escape from Cameroon
After being seriously wounded by homophobic attackers wielding clubs, rocks and machetes, Pierre wants to leave Cameroon. But so far he has been block [...]
Cameroon: Have a male partner? 3 years in prison
Ismael was living with his partner, an arrangement that outraged his neighbors in northern Cameroon. A Muslim, he was arrested, tried, convicted and n [...]
Gay Muslim in a Cameroon prison, ‘almost a slave’
A gay Muslim who was arrested in 2015 when police raided his Cameroon hotel room, Ibrahim was sentenced to prison because his hotel rendezvous was wit [...]
6 years in prison because Abdelaziz loved a man
Abdelaziz has been in Guider prison in northern Cameroon since 2015, sentenced to sex years of imprisonment because of his sexual orientation. [...]