The newest African country senegal to imposes stiffer penalties on the LGBTQ+ community, whose President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has signed a new provision into law that stiffens the penalty for homosexuality in the predominantly Muslim West African country.
The new law, which was approved by parliament almost unanimously last month, doubles the penalty for those convicted of the crime from prison sentences ranging from one to five years to five to 10 years. The new law also raises the fines for those convicted of the crime to a maximum of 10 million CFA Francs, or $17,609.
However, the new bill maintains the offense of homosexuality as a misdemeanor instead of a crime. Ministers argued that the previous law of 1966 was too liberal in the parliament session. The new law classifies homosexuality, necrophilia, and bestiality as “acts against nature” offenses. In its bid to crack down on organizations that support sexual minorities, the new law also punishes what it calls “promoting” or “financing” homosexuality.
However, it also punishes anyone who “without proof” accuses a person of homosexuality. More than 30 of the 54 countries in Africa have laws that classify homosexuality as a crime. These laws classify
