Senegal’s parliament has approved new laws that double the prison time for people suspected of being homosexual. Those convicted now face up to ten years in prison.
The parliament also passed new laws that criminalise the promotion of LGBTIQA+ information. The offence carries a prison term of three to seven years for anyone who publicly advocates for, promotes, or defends LGBTQ+ rights.
The law was passed with 135 politicians supporting the measure and just three abstaining from the vote; nobody voted against the proposal.
Tougher laws on homosexuality were a campaign promise of Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko and his protégé Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who serves as the country’s president.
The passage of the laws comes as police conduct a wave of arrests in recent weeks of people suspected of being gay, lesbian, or bisexual. The International Federation for Human Rights has reported that 27 men were arrested between 9 and 24 February.
United Nations human rights chief Volker Türk has described the bill as “deeply worrying” and urged the Senegalese president not to sign it into law.
The legislation lists homosexuality, bisexuality, and “transsexuality” alongside zoophilia and necrophilia.
