Gambia: No Room for Gays, Lesbians - President Jammeh

BY HATAB FADERA

In the midst of the chorus of widespread condemnations of the imposition of
values and norms alien to Africa under the pretext of human rights, the Gambian
leader has made his position clear, denouncing in the strongest term possible
terms what he called "ungodly gay marriages", saying his country has no "room
for gays and lesbians".

His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh made the condemnation
Friday at the Legislative Chambers, while presiding over the 2012 State Opening
of the National Assembly.

He said: "If you want us to be ungodly for you to give us aid, take your aid
away, we will survive. We will rather eat grass than accept this ungodly evil
attitude that is anti-God, anti-human and anti-creation. What is interesting is
that Muslim veils have been banned [in some Western countries], and they want
us to accept gays and lesbians in Africa, hell no! It will not happen in this
country.

We will not allow anything that is ungodly to take place on this soil. If you
are caught and sent to jail, we will make sure that you are separated and put
you in one jail where you will not see a man. We will not lock homosexuals in
one jail."

President Jammeh stressed that in The Gambia someone will be treated not based
on colour or religion, but according to the way the person behaves. He stressed
that one thing that they will never compromise for whatever reason is the
"integrity of our culture, our dignity and our sovereignty". Stating that his
country doesn't intend to colonise anybody even in revenge, the president
warned that The Gambia also will not be colonised or enslaved twice.

Emphasising that every society has its own natural dos and don'ts, the Gambian
leader averred that as a member of the international community, his government
will abide by the international conventions that they have signed. "But as a
country," he added, "we will pass legislations that will preserve our cultures
and humanity, our dignity, and our identity as one Africans, West Africans and
Gambians." He posited that as part of the global community, they will take what
is common to all human beings irrespective of where you come from, stressing
that what is "ungodly" would not be accepted.

"We will preserve our Africaness and our religious belief to the letter and
laws will be made to make sure that our cultural values are upheld to the
letter. Sometimes you hear a lot of noise about my pronouncements. Let me make
it very clear that if you want me to offend God for you to give me aid, you are
making a great mistake. You will not bribe me to do what is evil and ungodly,"
he stated.

To this end, President Jammeh revealed that his government will be giving
legislations that a lot of people will be interested in- non-Gambians, thus
reiterating that ungodly things will not be tolerated. "We lost our traditional
head scarf for a necktie, but we will not lose our humanity for the so-called
human rights," he said.

He continued: "There are certain things going on that are ungodly, evil, and a
challenge to the Almighty Allah's wisdom in creating a man and a woman. In
Africa, in The Gambia, in West Africa in general, if you [a man] don't want
troubles, marry a woman and not a man. But if you want trouble and you are a
man, have a man and see what is going to happen.

We are not going to accept that. After all, I have donkeys, I have zebras that
look like donkeys; I put them together they have never met because they are
different. I see no reasons why we human beings who are created by God cannot
see the difference, it will not happen in this country. We will respect human
rights where a human being behaves like a human being.

I have more than 5000 heads of cattle including bulls, the bulls fight when
one bull climbs onto the other. You want to tell me that cattle and bull are
more intelligent than the human beings?In your country a man can marry a man
and marry a woman if you are a woman, but in The Gambia, we will not accept
it."

The Gambian leader concluded by asserting "you can call me any names, but we
will not compromise our dignity, we will not insult our religion, and we will
not insult God by doing something in the name of human rights".

Fonte: http://allafrica.com/stories/201204230896.html
Pubblicato da: Lorenzo Bernini