Sibusiso Banda
@sbudalicious
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| Homosexuality is illegal in Zimbabwe but Taurai Zhanje takes part in Mr Gay World. |
The gay and lesbian community in South Africa has gone
through a lot lately, but they can finally take a breather and celebrate a bit
despite the many challenges facing the community in the country. Mr Gay World
is coming to Johannesburg in April and there are four African countries
participating, the largest number from the continent in the competition’s
history. This is despite homosexuality being illegal in over 30 African
countries. Another reason for celebration, although bitter-sweet, would be the
recent sentencing of the murderers of Cape Town lesbian, Zoliswa Nkonyane.
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| Mr Gay Ethiopia, Robel Gizaw Hailu. |
In the Mr Gay World competition, organisers say there
will be participants from Ethiopia, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Homosexuality is
illegal in all those African countries even though the law is hardly enforced. Zimbabwean
contestant, Taurai Zhanje, will struggle to convince authorities to accept his
decision back home as the country is going through constitutional reforms with
gay rights left out. The newzimbabwe.com quotes President Robert Mugabe saying
about gay people: “All of us at some point in our lives have raised dogs, and
we know that in raising them you need a female and male to mate in order to
have puppies. Now, if even dogs know that to procreate you need a male and a
female, what of us humans? They want men to wed men! That’s what we reject.”
