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Liberia: Lifetime Imprisonment for LGBTQ+ Persons
Monrovia — Persons identifying as lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgenders could face a lifetime or 10-year imprisonment when they are caught engaging in same-sex sexual acts, according to the proposed Anti Homosexuality Bill 2024 that is currently before the House of Representatives.
A copy of the Bill, which has been obtained by journalRAGE, states "an act of homosexuality is committed if two (2) or more persons of the same sex or gender willfully involve themselves into sexual relationship and or activities."
The introduction of the Bill on the floor of the House of Representatives comes against an article from the publisher of the online News Public Trust, Frank Sainworla, accusing journalRAGE of promoting the spread of homosexuality.
The Anti Homosexuality Bill 2024 was introduced a fortnight ago on the floor of the House of Representatives by Rep. Johnson N. Williams who said it is meant to preserve Liberia's cultural heritage which considers same-sex marriage and sexual acts an anathema.
"This draft bill, when passed into law, will fulfill Article 5(b) of the 1986 Liberian Constitution, which states that 'the Republic shall preserve, protect, and promote positive Liberian culture ensuring that traditional values compatible with public and national progress are adopted and developed as an integral part of the growing needs of the Liberian society," stated a communication from Rep. Williams as quoted by FrontPage Africa.
It seeks to amend Article 14.74 of the penal code of Liberia which currently considers sexual acts between adults of the same sex a misdemeanor.
The Bill, when amended, will make homosexual acts a second degree felony with punishment ranging from lifetime imprisonment, 10-jail sentence and excessive fines.
The Anti Homosexuality Bill also targets minors and teenagers with imprisonment if they are caught in same-sex sexual acts.
A copy of the Anti-Homosexuality 2024 Bill can be viewed here.
Under Section 14.84 titled "Punishment for Child Offender", "A child (10-15) who is convicted of an offence under section 14.82 (b) (a,c,d,g,j), of this Act shall instead of the punishment prescribed under section 14.83, Grading, shall be convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three years."
The Bill further states that a child (16-18) shall be sentenced to six years if also found guilty of homosexuality.
Upon introduction and reading on the House's floor, it was forwarded to the joint committees on Gender, Health and Judiciary.
However, many see the Bill as targeting the LGBTQ+ community in Liberia which continues to suffer harassment, discrimination and other forms of violence.
The chairperson of the National Civil Society Council, Loretta Alethea Pope, said the rights of everyone must be upheld. "We strongly support our members who are actively involved in advocating for human rights," she wrote in an email statement to journalRAGE.
Critics fear that the bill will embolden further attacks against individuals from Liberia's underground LGBTQ+ community who continue to suffer from violent homophobia.
The US State Department 2023 Human Rights report recorded instances of assault, harassment and hate speech against the LGBTQ+ community in Liberia.
In May 2023, Dominic Bropleh (name changed to protect his identity) accused FHI360 of outing his health status when the organization plastered his face on flyers across the country as an HIV+ individual.
In May 2021, members of a community watch team beat three men on suspicion they were gays in the Gobachop community of Paynesville. According to two of the survivors, the community watch team members threatened and assaulted them, rendering one of their friends unconscious.
In June 2021, Nuchie Michael, a teenager and a student at the St. Matthew United Methodist School in New Kru Town was expelled for cross-dressing.
In 2020, Cheeseman Cole, a disgraced ex-soldier from the Armed Forces of Liberia was arrested for reportedly brutalizing 27 men suspected of being gay.
In November 2019, partygoers were stoned and beaten over suspicions they were attending a gay wedding at an event hosted by Population Services International (PSI).
In September 2018, invitees at a PSI event in Sinkor were attacked and severely brutalized. The LGBT community faces worse discrimination as they are often blamed by religious leaders for spreading deadly diseases in the country.
Identifying as gay is not illegal in Liberia. But it could spur violent attacks against a person that does so. In May 2020, fashion model Tarus Cole fled the country over remarks that '99% of Liberian men are gay.'
Liberian law criminalizes same-sex sexual acts. Articles 14.74, 14.79, and 50.7 [of the Penal Code of 1976], which the Anti Homosexuality Bill seeks to amend, consider "voluntary sodomy" as a first-degree misdemeanor with a penalty of up to one-year imprisonment.
Panic in LGBTQ+ Community
The Anti Homosexuality Bill 2024 has raised anxiety levels in the House of Representatives since its introduction by Rep. Johnson N. Williams of River Gee County which is rapidly growing.
There is no verifiable data on the population of Liberia's LGBTQ+ population. But in a recent interview with journalRAGE, the program manager of the National AIDS Control Program at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Jonathan Flomo, there are about 70,000 men who sleep with men. The numbers were culled from the Integrated Behavioural and Biological Surveillance Survey (IBBSS) of 2018.
Baba Jones, 36, a gay man whose name has been changed to protect his identity, says he sees the proposed Bill as an attempt to rid the country of LGBTQ+ people.
"I think they finally want to get rid of us in this country," says Jones, who is an accountant. "We go to school, get an education, pay our taxes and yet they want to harass us.Why are they always targeting us as if we are the cause of Liberia's problem?"
Other members of the LGBTQ+ community have similar concerns-including Imelda Johnson, a transwoman who sells in Ma Juah Market.
"If I had money and a visa for any white man country, I will be on the next available flight out of Liberia."
Media Institutions Targeted
The Anti Homosexuality Bill 2024 is not only targeting the LGBTQ+ community, but also media institutions that cover sexual minorities.
Section 14.89 of the proposed Bill calls for imprisonment for anyone or institution that seeks to broadcast or write on queer issues in the country.
"A person who promotes homsexuality commits an offence and is liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a period not exceeding twenty years." Furthermore, the Bill stated, if the offence is committed by a registered entity, they shall be fined One Million Liberian Dollars with a suspension or cancellation of their license.
Responding to the proposed Bill, the secretary-general of the Reporters Association of Liberia, Bobby Tingban, says the organization does not see it as targeting journalists and media institutions.
"The bill is trying to prevent an illegal act. It is wrong to get involved with homosexuality across the country."
But not every media institution shares the view of the Reporters Association of Liberia.
The Liberian Health and Rights Journalists Network, a member of the LIPRIDE coalition, says the Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2024 is not only targeting sexual minorities but also people who are trying to improve the health rights of the LGBTQ+ community.
"It creates an environment in Liberia that's not enabling," a spokesperson for the organization said in an interview with journalRAGE. "Liberia is a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights-this is a witch hunt to target a particular community using the homophobic environment to target certain people."
He said actors in the Liberian human rights ecosystem should not remain reticent on the matter.
"The INCHR [Independent National Commission on Human Rights] needs to come up with a statement as this is very concerning. This should also be the concern of human rights defenders because it might put Liberia backward when it comes to human rights.
According to the spokesperson of the Liberian Health and Rights Journalists Network, the proposed Bill from Rep. Williams of River Gee County is seeking to box human rights actors.
"The health and human rights of everyone will be targeted and the gains made in different areas, especially the national HIV response, will be eroded." He called for the intervention of internal and external partners.
"LGBTQ+ people are who they are. You can't criminalize people for being who they are.
This story has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents are the sole responsibility of journalRAGE and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union.
Editor's note: Ibrahim Kaba name has been changed to protect his identity.
(c) 2024, Front Page Africa
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