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Zimbabwe president: Arrest gays who don’t conceive children

Robert Mugabe made comments during July 5 rally in country’s capital

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Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, Gay News, Washington Blade
Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, Gay News, Washington Blade

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe. (Photo public domain)

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe on July 5 said authorities should arrest gays and lesbians who don’t conceive children.

“I should like to shut them-up in some room and see if they get pregnant; if they don’t then it’s jail because they have claimed they can have children,” the tabloid New Zimbabwe quoted Mugabe as saying during a rally in Harare, the country’s capital, at which he unveiled the platform of his party, ZANU-PF, ahead of the African nation’s July 31 elections. “So, to that kind of rot, we say no, no, no, no!”

The tabloid further reported that Mugabe criticized the Anglican Church for blessing same-sex marriages.

The Zimbabwean Broadcasting Corporation noted Mugabe also blasted President Obama’s support of nuptials for gays and lesbians.

“Obama said he wished that we in Africa accepted gay marriages,” Mugabe said. “Parents, tell your children that we are against gay marriage.”

Mugabe, whom Zimbabweans elected president in 1987 after he had served as the country’s first post-independence prime minister from 1980, has previously used homophobic rhetoric against gays and lesbians.

He described gay men and lesbians who participated in the annual International Book Festival in Harare in 1995 as “dogs and pigs.” LGBTQ Nation reported Mugabe said during a speech he gave a Roman Catholic-run teacher’s college in the city of Masvingo in southeastern Zimbabwe last month that gays and lesbians “should rot in jail” as he suggested the country’s anti-homosexuality laws are too lenient.

The State Department last August criticized the Zimbabwean government’s crackdown on LGBT rights activists after police arrested more than 40 members of Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) inside the advocacy group’s Harare office. GALZ members, who routinely face harassment and even death threats, said authorities confiscated computers and pamphlets from the same office a few days earlier.

New Zimbabwe also reported that Mugabe during his Harare speech on July 5 referenced former President Canaan Banana, who in 1998 received a 10 year prison sentence after his conviction on charges sodomy, attempted sodomy and indecent assault against his former male employees.

Mugabe’s comments came less than two weeks after Obama applauded the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that found a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional in response to a question he received during a press conference with Senegalese President Macky Sall in Dakar, Senegal.

Obama also reaffirmed his opposition to the criminalization of homosexuality.

“When it comes to how the state treats people, how the law treats people, I believe that everybody has to be treated equally,” he said. “I don’t believe in discrimination of any sort. That’s my personal view.”

Amnesty International noted in a report it released on June 24 — two days before Obama left for his week-long trip to Africa that also included visits to South Africa and Tanzania — that 38 African countries continue to criminalize consensual same-sex conduct.

A senior administration official on Monday declined to comment, saying the White House would not “dignify Mugabe’s comments with a response.”

The Zimbabwean embassy in D.C. did not return the Washington Blade’s request for comment.

A GALZ member with whom the Blade spoke earlier this year in the nation’s capital said ZANU-PF is going to “use the issue of homosexuality as one of their campaign tools” ahead of the July 31 elections.

GALZ Chair Samba Chesterfield urged Mugabe to “desist from making such hate filled statements that impact on the lives of LGBT people” during an interview with LGBTQ Nation.

“Mugabe needs to deal with issues such as unemployment, impunity, access to clean water and corruption in government, rather than such rhetoric that does not do much to win over a despondent electorate,” Chesterfield told the website.

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United Kingdom

Four UK Pride organizations ban political parties from events

Statement notes Supreme Court ruling that excludes trans women from legal definition of woman

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(Photo by Rob Wilson via Bigstock)

The organizers of four of the largest Prides in the U.K. have banned political parties from their events.

A statement that Pride in London, Manchester Pride, Birmingham Pride, and Brighton Pride issued on Thursday specifically notes last month’s U.K. Supreme Court ruling that said the legal definition of a woman is limited to “biological women” and does not include transgender women.

“The recent ruling by the U.K. Supreme Court to exclude trans women from the definition of the term ‘woman’ underscores the urgent need for immediate action,” reads the statement. “In this moment, we choose to stand firmer, louder, and prouder in demanding change that protects and uplifts trans lives.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer after the ruling said “a woman is a biological woman” under the country’s 2010 Equality Act that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

The Pride organizations in their statement did not specifically reference Starmer and his comments. They did, however, announce they are “collectively suspending political party participation in our Pride events.”

“Know that this is not a symbolic gesture,” reads the statement. “It is a direct call for accountability and a refusal to platform those who have not protected our rights.”

The groups also made the following demands:

• Full and enforceable protections under the Equality Act

• Timely and dignified access to NHS (National Health Service) gender-affirming healthcare

• A reformed, accessible Gender Recognition Certificate process

• Sustainable funding for trans-led services and support organizations across the U.K.

“This is the minimum,” said the groups. “Anything less is not allyship, it is abandonment.”

“Our main parties have let us down and need to re-earn their place in our marches,” said Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is the director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, in a newsletter that his organization publishes. “Pride is a protest.”

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European Union

EU countries ‘alarmed’ over Hungary’s worsening anti-LGBTQ crackdown

Budapest authorities have banned June 1 march

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The Hungarian parliament in Budapest, Hungary, on April 4, 2024. (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

The governments of 20 European Union countries on Tuesday said they are “alarmed” over Hungary’s worsening anti-LGBTQ crackdown.

Hungarian lawmakers in March passed a bill that bans Pride events and allow authorities to use facial recognition technology to identify those who participate in them. MPs last month amended the Hungarian constitution to ban public LGBTQ events.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee on Tuesday said police in Budapest, the Hungarian capital, have banned an LGBTQ rights march that was scheduled to have taken place on June 1. The Budapest-based human rights NGO in a press release said authorities cited the law that bans Pride events and other demonstrations “displaying homosexuality.”

Budapest Pride is scheduled to take place on June 28. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee and other groups, including the Háttér Society, a Hungarian LGBTQ rights organization, said they will challenge the ban.

“We are deeply concerned by recent legislative and constitutional amendments infringing on the fundamental rights of LGBTIQ+ persons which were adopted by the Hungarian parliament on March 18 and April 14, 2025, following other anti-LGBTIQ+ legislation already introduced in previous years,” reads a declaration that the Austrian, Belgian, Cypriot, Czech, Danish, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Icelandic, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourgish, Maltese, Dutch, Portuguese, Slovenian, Spanish, and Swedish governments issued.

“Under the pretext of child protection, these legislative amendments allow fines to be imposed on participants and organizers of events, such as the annual Pride celebrations,” it adds. “The amendments also allow for facial recognition software to be used at such events, and for banning such events. We are concerned by the implications of these measures on freedom of expression, the right to peaceful assembly, and the right to privacy.”

The governments stress they are “highly alarmed by these developments which run contrary to the fundamental values of human dignity, freedom, equality and respect for human rights, as laid down in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union.”

“Respecting and protecting the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people, including LGBTIQ+ persons, is inherent in being part of the European family. This is our responsibility and shared commitment of the member states and the European institutions,” says the declaration.

“We therefore call upon Hungary to revise these measures, to ensure the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all its citizens are respected and protected, thus complying with its international obligations,” it adds.

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Lesotho

Lesotho is an example of the power of communities

People’s Matrix Association’s tangible policy reforms have changed lives

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A Pride event in Lesotho (Photo courtesy of the People's Matrix Association)

This year’s International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism, and Transphobia (IDAHOBiT) celebrates the diversity within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer (LGBTIQ+) communities, from grassroots movements to regional and global networks, by honoring our varied and intersecting backgrounds, identities, and experiences. The 2025 theme highlights how strength and resilience grow through collective solidarity and open dialogue. It recognizes the transformative power of conversations bridging differences, fostering understanding, and building alliances. Through these dialogues, activists, human rights defenders, civil society groups, allies, and governments are shaping narratives and advancing equal rights.

“Motho ke motho ka batho!” or “A person is a person through other people!”

While many countries have seen policy reforms related to LGBTIQ+ people after lengthy court battles, the LGBTIQ+ community in Lesotho has a different experience and has taken a different approach, which has opened the doors to transformation.

At the heart of this story is the People’s Matrix Association, whose strategic, community-rooted advocacy has led to tangible policy reforms that have changed lives and set a powerful example for the region. At the core of this, they have been using dialogue as one of their core values and strategies to achieve legislative and social reform.

The power of collectiveness

The Basotho people’s innate emphasis on mutual respect, conversation, and shared humanity laid a strong foundation for meaningful engagement. With this understanding, the People’s Matrix Association focuses on building strong bridges with government officials, police, teachers, parents, and traditional leaders. Although not a walk in the park, activists have significantly succeeded in engaging with and encouraging policymakers to see LGBTIQ+ people as deserving of fundamental rights, such as dignity and equality and not as political pawns for popular votes.

The power of Pride

Despite facing pushbacks, stigma, and violence, the community remains steadfast. They organize, mobilize, and build alliances with broader human rights movements for deeper inclusion and intersectionality. For example, the IDAHOBiT and Pride celebrations play a crucial role in reaffirming LGBTIQ+ existence and further strengthening and inspiring unity. They enable Basotho LGBTIQ+ people to claim and occupy spaces.

The power of resilience as a catalyst for change

In 2024, the parliament of Lesotho amended the Labor Act 2024 to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and HIV status. This bold move solidified Lesotho as one of the few countries in Southern Africa to protect LGBTIQ+ people in the workplace, after South Africa and Botswana. And all this happened without a court ruling. This amendment means that LGBTIQ+ people and people living with HIV have legal recourse against hate and discrimination in the workplace. A giant step towards dignity, affirmation, and economic inclusion.

Rights under attack

Early this year, Lesotho came under attack by the Trump administration. On March 4, 2025, Trump made a claim about the People’s Matrix Association receiving $8 million to promote LGBTIQ+ rights, adding that “nobody has ever heard of Lesotho.” This intentionally inaccurate disinformation has surprised many. Yet, during this moment of hostility, we witness the power of communities rallying in solidarity and using this moment to refute harmful narratives and the need to protect Lesotho’s values, which are: “U se ke ua re ho moroa, moroa tooe!” and “Motho ke motho ka batho!”

But it does not end there, in recent months, Lesotho has witnessed a rise in attacks towards LGBTIQ+ identifying individuals, fueled by an increase in misinformation, disinformation, discrimination and online hate. These threats and violence have put the community on edge. External forces, such as false sentiments, further make LGBTIQ+ people targets of hate.

Despite these challenges, LGBTIQ+ communities in Lesotho continue to organize, speak out, and build alliances to defend human rights. Now more than ever, the power of communities theme is important and relevant in protecting the gains made in advancing equal rights in Lesotho.

Tampose Mothopeng is a transgender human rights defender, publisher, and executive director of the People’s Matrix Association that championing the rights of LGBTIQ+ people. Bradley Fortuin is a consultant at the Southern Africa Litigation Center and a social justice activist.

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