Kenyan court to hear challenge to degrading anal exams

A Kenyan appeal court will hear arguments on Oct. 11 challenging the constitutionality of anal examinations, which are used by law enforcement in a mistaken belief that the intrusive tests can determine whether a man is homosexual. Continue reading →

Kenya LGBTI advocates fight to keep official recognition

Kenyan LGBTI rights advocates are scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, July 27, to further their quest for official government recognition of their legitimacy. Continue reading →

Kenya petition seeks halt to abusive anal testing

A Kenyan advocacy group is petitioning the nation’s director of public prosecutions to put an end to anal tests, an abusive medical procedure that its advocates believe, incorrectly, can prove whether a suspect is homosexual. Continue reading →

Abusive anal exams get a thumbs-up from Kenyan judge

A judge in eastern Kenya has rejected a challenge to the legality of anal exams, even though they are widely understood to be abusive and ineffective as a means of proving or disproving allegations of homosexual activity. Today’s ruling by the High Court in Mombasa means that a criminal case can proceed against two men … Continue reading →

Tally of LGBTI rights, wrongs in 29 sub-Saharan countries

Several countries in sub-Saharan Africa have made progress in recognizing the human rights of LGBTI people, but much work remains to be done in the region’s 29 countries that still have laws against same-sex intimacy. LGBTI rights in those African countries are the focus of the following excerpts  from the 2015 edition of the U.S. … Continue reading →

Activists sue to overturn Kenyan anti-gay law

A Kenyan LGBTI rights group has filed a lawsuit aimed at overturning the Kenyan law against same-sex intimacy between consenting adults. The Kenyan National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC) said in a statement Friday, April 15, that the case, which challenges the constitutionality of certain sections of the penal code, will be heard … Continue reading →

How to help build on Kenyan court success

A successful Kenyan advocacy group is seeking donations to continue its work promoting recognition of the human rights of LGBTI people in Kenya. Previously, the National Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC) won a court ruling that ordered the Kenyan government to grant it legal recognition. In April, Kenya’s High Court rejected the government’s … Continue reading →

Kenyan leader speaks against anti-gay violence

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta warned yesterday against “witch-hunts” targeting homosexuals. In an interview Oct. 18 with CNN, he dismissed proposals to repeal Kenya’s law against same-sex relations, but said that all Kenyans have a right to protection under the law. In an interview with CNN on Oct. 18, Kenyatta discussed LGBT issues, saying that the … Continue reading →

Kenya moves to appeal courtroom win by LGBTI group

As expected, the government of Kenya has filed notice that it plans to appeal a High Court ruling of April 24 that would open the way to official recognition of LGBTI organizations. The government has refused to register such organizations on the basis of Kenyan law prohibiting same-sex intimacy. The April 24 decision came in … Continue reading →

Tabloid joins politician, bishops in targeting LGBTI Kenyans

In the wake of last month’s High Court decision in favor of a Kenyan organization seeking human rights for LGBTI people, some anti-gay Kenyans have opened the door to even more intense persecution of LGBTI Kenyans. The latest step in that direction was today’s publication by Kenya’s tabloid Weekly Citizen of a list of the … Continue reading →