Anti-homosexual purge in Tanzania worries Ottawa

In Tanzania, official anti-homosexual prejudices are forcing Canadian officials to reassess the country's relationship with one of the largest recipients of aid in Canada.

The arrests of homosexual men in Zanzibar this weekend and the launch of "anti-gay patrols" in the former capital Dar es Salaam on Monday are the latest incidents that have alarmed Canadian diplomats. They took part this week in high level meetings attended by not only Canadian and Tanzanian officials, but also those of other Western donor countries.

Homophobic acts in Tanzania are particularly uncomfortable for Canada, which gave it more than $ 125 million in direct assistance last year, making it Canada's sixth largest recipient in the world. .

Canada co-chairs the Coalition for Equal Rights, a group of 40 countries that Canada has helped create. The coalition promotes LGBT equality around the world and has strongly condemned some of the practices used in Tanzania, including the use of forced anal exams to collect "evidence" of homosexual behavior, which in Tanzania may lead to life imprisonment.

& # 39; Give me their names & # 39;

"Give me their names," Dar es Salaam regional commissioner Paul Makonda said in a message to residents of Tanzania's largest city last week, according to Agence France-Presse reports. Press. "My ad hoc team will start getting their hands on next Monday."

According to Makonda, the teams are made up of police officers, agents from the Tanzania Communications Authority and "media professionals" who scan social media for homosexual behavior. They received over 5,000 tips on their first day of operation, he said.

According to local media, many gay men in the city are now hiding. Others said they received extortion requests with threats of denunciation from the self defense teams.

"These homosexuals boast of social networks," said Makonda, adding that their homosexuality "tramples the moral values ​​of Tanzanians".

While the anti-gay team was preparing for its first patrols in Dar es Salaam, the Zanzibar Island police arrested ten men.

Seif Magango, deputy director of Amnesty International for East Africa, issued a statement claiming that the two men had been arrested for sitting together two.

"We now fear that these men will be subjected to forced anal examination, the government's method of choice to" prove "same-sex sexual activity among men," he said.

"It must not be allowed, these men must be released immediately."

Canada asks for explanations

While anti-gay harassment has increased since the election of President John Magufuli (nicknamed "The Bulldozer") in 2015, Western donors in the country have formed an "LGBT working group" to coordinate their efforts to bring the government to change course.

Canada is cooperating closely with other countries on this issue, including the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Ireland.

Government officials told CBC News that Canada's new High Commissioner to Tanzania, Pamela O Donnell, raised the issue with President Magufuli when she presented her credentials on Thursday.

But some countries have reacted more strongly than others to the persecution campaign.

Last Saturday, the United States warned citizens of the country to be aware of the threat of arrest and to remove any compromising items on their phones.

On Monday, the European Union went further by withdrawing its ambassador from the country.

Canadian officials have been hesitant to go that far. After meeting with Canadian and foreign diplomats, the Tanzanian Foreign Ministry released a statement in which he distanced himself from Makonda's squads.

"The Government of the United Republic of Tanzania wishes to clarify that what was said was only a personal opinion and not the government's position," the statement said. "The United Republic of Tanzania will also continue to respect and uphold all human rights as set out in the country's constitution."

But the Magufuli government has not said anything about stopping the anti-gay crusade proclaimed by Makonda, considered a loyal sidekick of the president. As for Makonda himself, the Christian devotee dispelled the concerns of the donor countries by saying: "I prefer to annoy those countries that God angry".

And the national government is itself engaged in persecution campaigns. Last year, he threatened to publish the names of homosexual Tanzanians and ordered the closure of 40 open HIV clinics, mostly supported by NGOs and foreign governments, because the government accused them of encouraging the # 39; homosexuality.

Canada has dedicated much of its AIDS funding to maternal health and adolescent health – only to see the Tanzanian government criticizing such efforts. President Magufuli said foreigners were promoting birth control for grim reasons and urged Tanzanian women to "get rid of their contraceptives".

"Those who go to family planning are lazy," said Magufuli, saying that they could not be bothered to feed more children. Even as experts warn of an impending overpopulation disaster in the Great Lakes region, the Tanzanian government is encouraging women to have all possible children.

Rights group warns: too much pressure can backfire

"This is a topic of great concern to our government," said Adam Austen, of Global Affairs Canada, at CBC News. "We have approached this issue directly with the Tanzanian government and continue to monitor the situation, working with our like-minded friends and allies.The Tanzanian government has made it clear that this is not an official policy."

Louis Belanger, spokesperson for International Development Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, told CBC that the government "takes note of the Tanzanian government's statement that the Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner has announced a campaign against homosexuals in the city of Dar es Salaam. "only the personal opinion and not the position of the government". "

Speaking on the merits, officials said Canada would wait to see what would happen next before deciding on its next decisions.

Human rights groups point out that the Tanzanian government has promised not to target homosexuals in the past. Yet, raids and arrests continue, both in Dar es Salaam and in other parts of the country.

However, Amnesty International does not criticize Canada for being cautious about this problem.

"Too often, the rights of LGBT people are perceived by some countries as a Nordic and Western creation," said Jacqueline Hansen, Amnesty International. "So sometimes, if the pressure to protect LGBT rights comes from countries like Canada, it can actually have a negative effect."

Hansen said recent external efforts to help LGBT activists facing pressure in neighboring Uganda provide an example.

"Activists in the country told us:" Please, do not take action from the West, it will only make matters worse. " need action from inside sub-Saharan Africa, that's what will be useful to make a difference. "

"We know from experience that if foreign aid is cut off because of LGBT rights, it can actually provoke retaliation against LGBT people in this country. We therefore encourage Canada to use other channels to continue to pursue quiet diplomacy. "

Acts of solidarity

Hansen said many of the activists Amnesty normally works with in Tanzania have been hiding, making it difficult for them to get in contact.

Hansen said that although some African countries are eager to label Western pressure for LGBT rights as "neo-colonial" interference, they are often less willing to examine the origins of anti-LGBT codes. -gays that they apply.

"These are colonial laws still in effect during the British colonial period," she said. "It's ironic, it's frustrating.

"What we are trying to do right now, is it nicely, in a way that is not going to ignite things, show solidarity acts online with activists in Tanzania, so that's not going to happen. they know that the world is watching them, and that they are not alone – are here about to act in the way that they deem fit. "

Canada's new ambassador to Tanzania, Pamela O Donnell, seems to be part of it in her first tweets.