Sister Namibia editor fights for lesbian rights post-apartheid

Off Our Backs, Mar/Apr 2002 by Eastlick, Megan, Frank, Liz

Despite the propaganda of the government, no one has been arrested or detained because of his or her sexual orientation. Rumors have circulated about gay bashing in northern Namibia, but Sister Namibia has been unable to validate that it is actually happening. The Special Field Force, which was created to control an uprising in the North of Namibia, has recently been working in Windhoek, supposedly to fight crime and find illegal residents. Instead, it has been intimidating men wearing earrings. Namibian police officials deny ordering harassment. The officers in charge of the harassment claim that they are carrying out instructions from the president. The confrontations have sparked debate on the relation between imported fashion and Namibian culture. According to Frank, "There is a national debate on whether all men with earrings are gay, or whether it's part of the traditions of some Namibian communities for men to wear earrings!"

This issue is a small part of the complicated political argument about the origins of homosexuality in Namibia. President Nujoma explains his objections to homosexuality using an anti-imperialistic rationale. He claims that homosexuality is "unAfrican and unnatural." This may help his ranting to become socially acceptable as many Africans are against the cultural and economic imperialism of the US and Europe.

Ironically, homophobia was most likely transported to Namibia by an extremely Western and imperialistic force: Christian missionaries. These white messengers of the "good news" were responsible for imposing "a whole range of taboos regarding sexualities and sexual practices," said Frank. A majority of Namibians, 80 to 90%, claim Christianity as their faith. Although believed to be the origin of homophobia, many Christian churches in Namibia have since changed their position in regard to LGBT rights. The Council of Churches in Namibia recently agreed that people should not be persecuted because of their sexual orientation, and that all people have equal human rights. Since that statement, Nujoma has attacked Christianity as a "foreign philosophy."

To sum up,Nujoma uses antiimperialistic rhetoric to attack a practice that was never condemned before the arrival of white Christian missionaries, the most egregious cultural imperialists ever to set foot on the continent of Africa. If this seems to lack logic, consider that there have been signs that the ultimate political goal of Nujoma's administration has been merely to stay in power. It appears his administration sees scapegoating as a last-ditch method of unifying voters. According to Frank, Nujoma's recent statements "have lost all logic, his agenda seems to be to attack all and sundry in an attempt to create an array of enemy images against which the ruling party must stick together and do ideological battle."

Many in the progressive movement inside Namibia believe that the president is using homosexuality as a wedge issue to divert attention from other more pressing issues in the country. Phil ya Nangoloh, the director of a human rights organization in Namibia, believes that "The only logical explanation we can provide for Nujoma's comments is that it is a diversionary tactic aimed at taking public attention away from burning issues like unemployment [at 30-40%] and other social ills in this country- things like Namibia's involvement in foreign wars in the DRC and Angola." Frank agrees with Nangoloh, and thinks that "the stirring up of homophobia is definitely being used as a party-political campaign tool" by the president, Nujoma does need to distract attention away from his own record and activities in order to maintain power.