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Top 10 international LGBTQ news stories of 2024

Pope reaches out, Oct. 7 aftermath, Trump rattles activists

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From left, Pope Francis continues his cautious outreach to LGBTQ Catholics; Russian PresidentĀ Vladimir PutinĀ takes his fifth presidential oath of office; a public art display at Ben-Gurion Airport demands the release of the hostages who remain in the Gaza Strip. (Photo of Francis by palinchak/Bigstock; photo of Putin by Alexander Kazakov/RIA Novosti; Washington Blade photo of art display by Michael K. Lavers)

The extension of marriage rights to same-sex couples, anti-LGBTQ crackdowns, war, and elections are among the issues that made headlines around the world over the past year. Here are the top international stories of 2024.

#10 African countries move to criminalize homosexuality

Ghanaian MPs on Feb. 28 passed the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill that would, among other things, criminalize allyship. Outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo did not immediately sign the bill, citing the outcome of a Supreme Court case.

Burkina Faso Justice Minister Edasso Bayala on July 10 announced consensual same-sex sexual acts are illegal in the country. Mali’s Transitional National Council on Oct. 31 adopted a draft penal code that would criminalize acts of homosexuality.

The Dominica High Court of Justice, on the other hand, on April 22 struck down provisions of a law that criminalized consensual same-sex sexual relations in the Caribbean nation. A judge on St. Vincent and the Grenadines’s top court on Feb. 16 dismissed two cases that challenged the country’s sodomy laws.

#9 More countries extend marriage rights to same-sex couples

Greece, Liechtenstein, and Estonia in 2024 extended marriage rights to same-sex couples.

Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Sept. 24 approved a marriage equality bill that lawmakers passed earlier in the year. It is slated to take effect on Jan. 22, 2025. Liechtenstein’s marriage equality law will take effect on New Year’s Day.

The Dutch Supreme Court on July 12 ruled Aruba and CuraƧao must extend marriage rights to same-sex couples. Czech lawmakers in February rejected a marriage equality bill.

#8 Gay, lesbian lawmakers make headlines

Steve Letsike, a lesbian who founded Access Chapter 2, a South African advocacy group, on May 29 won a seat in the South African National Assembly. President Cyril Ramaphosa later named her to his Cabinet.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Jan. 9 named Gabriel Attal as the country’s first openly gay prime minister. Attal resigned in July after Macron’s party lost its overall majority in the National Assembly.

Then-Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar on March 20 announced his resignation. He became the country’s first gay prime minister in 2017.

Prime Minister Gabriel Attal. (Photo courtesy of the French government)

#7 Algerian boxer Imane Khelif faces questions over gender at Olympics

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif faced questions over her gender during the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Khelif won the Olympic gold medal in the women’s 66-kilogram competition on Aug. 10. She was born female and does not identify as transgender or intersex. The International Olympic Committee said Khelif “is not a man fighting a woman.”

Khelif after the games filed a criminal complaint against JK Rowling and Elon Musk with French authorities. The lawsuit claims the two engaged in ā€œacts of aggravated cyber harassment.ā€

Imane Khelif on left. (Screenshot via YouTube)

#6 Mexico bans ā€˜conversion therapy’

The Mexican Senate on April 25 overwhelmingly approved a bill that bans so-called conversion therapy in the country.

The measure passed by a 77-4 vote margin with 15 abstentions. The Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Mexico’s congress, in March approved the bill that, among other things, would subject conversion therapy practitioners to between two and six years in prison and fines.

Canada, Brazil, Belgium, Germany, France, and New Zealand are among the countries that ban conversion therapy. 

#5 Germany’s Self-Determination Act takes effect

A German law that simplifies the process for transgender or nonbinary people to legally change their name and gender in official documents took effect on Nov. 1.

The country’s Cabinet on Aug. 21 approved the Gender Self-Determination Act.

#4 Russia’s anti-LGBTQ crackdown continues

The Russian government in 2024 continued its anti-LGBTQ crackdown.

President Vladimir Putin last month signed a bill that bans the adoption of Russian children in countries where gender transition is legal. 

Media reports indicate authorities on Nov. 30 raided three Moscow nightclubs that have hosted LGBTQ-specific events. Authorities in October raided two bars in the Russian capital and in Yekaterinburg. The raids coincided with National Coming Out Day events.

Russian President Vladimir Putin takes his 5th presidential oath of office on May 7, 2024. (Photo by Alexander Kazakov/RIA Novosti)

#3 Pope Francis continues outreach to LGBTQ Catholics

Pope Francis in 2024 continued his outreach to LGBTQ Catholics.

The pontiff on Oct. 12 met with a group of transgender and intersex Catholics and LGBTQ allies at the Vatican. Sister Jeannine Gramick, co-founders of New Ways Ministry, a Maryland-based organization that advocates on behalf of LGBTQ Catholics, arranged the meeting that took place at Casa Santa Marta, Francis’s residence in Vatican City.

Clare Byarugaba of Chapter Four Uganda and Rightify Ghana Director Ebenezer Peegah met with Francis at the Vatican on Aug. 14.

Francis earlier this year during an interview with CBS Evening News anchor Norah O’Donnell said priests can bless gays and lesbians who are couples, as opposed to their unions. Francis in a declaration the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith released on March 25 condemned gender-affirming surgeries and ā€œgender theory.ā€

Pope Francis continued his cautious outreach to LGBTQ Catholics in 2024. (Photo by palinchak via Bigstock)

#2 LGBTQ Israelis, Palestinians grapple with Oct. 7 aftermath

The Washington Blade traveled to Israel in October to cover the first anniversary of Oct. 7 and how LGBTQ Israelis and Palestinians continue to grapple with its aftermath.

Jerusalem Open House for Pride and Tolerance, Pride House of Be’er Sheva, the Aguda, the Israeli Transgender Association, and other Israeli advocacy groups continue to offer access to mental health services, housing programs, and other needs to those directly impacted by Oct. 7. 

The Blade interviewed Omer Ohana, who successfully lobbied Israeli lawmakers to amend the country’s Bereaved Families Law to recognize LGBTQ widows and widowers of fallen Israel Defense Forces soldiers. Hamas militants on Oct. 8, 2023, killed his fiancĆ©, IDF Maj. Sagi Golan, in a kibbutz near the Gaza Strip.

LGBTQ aid workers who have worked with queer Palestinians in Gaza over the last year also spoke with the Blade.

ā€œIt became very apparent to me that everything we did was like pouring water into the desert,ā€ said Rain Doe Dubilewski of Safebow, which helped more than 300 people evacuate Gaza. ā€œThere was nothing we can offer that is lasting or stable for the Palestinian people.ā€

A public art display at Ben-Gurion Airport on Oct. 4, 2024, demands the release of the hostages who remain in the Gaza Strip. (Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

#1 Trump re-election sparks concern among LGBTQ activists around the world

President-elect Donald Trump’s election in November sparked concern among LGBTQ activists and advocacy groups around the world.

ā€œI worry that Trump’s win means no protection for global LGBTQ+ human rights,ā€ Sexual Minorities Uganda Executive Director Frank Mugisha told the Blade.

Esteban Paulón, a long-time LGBTQ activist in Argentina who won a seat in the country’s Congress in 2022, echoed Mugisha. Outright International Executive Director Maria Sjƶdin in an email to their group’s supporters after the election said the results ā€œhave raised deep concerns for many of us who care about fundamental human rights, freedoms, and democratic norms for LGBTIQ people and everyone else around the world.ā€

Trump during his first administration tapped then-U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell to lead an initiative that encouraged countries to decriminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations. Activists with whom the Blade has previously spoken questioned whether this effort had any tangible results.

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Lesotho

LGBTQ activist murdered in Lesotho

Authorities have arrested a suspect in Kabelo Seseli’s death

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Kabelo Seseli (Photo courtesy of Seseli's Facebook page)

Kabelo Seseli, a gay crossdresser and LGBTQ activist in Lesotho, was murdered over the weekend in a suspected homophobic attack.

According to the People’s Matrix Association, a LGBTQ rights organization, Seseli’s body was found with stab wounds on their neck and genitals.

“This was not just a murder, it was a hate-driven, dehumanizing act meant to send a message of fear and rejection to our community,” said the People’s Matrix Association in a statement posted to its Facebook page on April 29. “Kabelo deserved to live. Kabelo deserved dignity, safety, and the freedom to exist without fear, just like every Mosotho.”

The LGBTQ rights group also said it is demanding action, justice, and protection from the government, especially given the fact authorities have arrested a suspect.

“We strongly condemn this act of violence and call on the government of Lesotho and law enforcement authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and ensure that those responsible are held fully accountable,” said the People’s Matrix Association. “We also urge leaders and the public to reflect on the role of hate speech and social stigma, which continue to incite violence against LGBTI individuals across our country. We demand action.”

Victor Mukasa of Trans and History Intersex Africa also condemned Seseli’s murder.

“Death is a fact of life, but murder is criminal,” said Mukasa. “Murder of people because they are LGBTIQA+ or for belonging to a particular social group is a hate crime.”

Thato Motsieloa, a gay crossdresser and LGBTQ activist, said he was “deeply distraught to learn about the brutal murder of Kabelo Seseli.” Motsieloa said he and Seseli met on Facebook.

“Although we never met in person, we had plans to do so,” said Motsieloa. “The manner of his death is particularly heartbreaking, and the fact that his killers desecrated his body by removing his private parts is utterly heinous. I hope justice is served, and those responsible face the consequences of their horrific actions. My sincerest condolences go out to Kabelo’s family, may his soul rest in eternal peace.”

Lesotho in 2012 decriminalized consensual same-sex sexual relations. Marriage, however, remains limited to heterosexual couples. There have also been sporadic reports of anti-LGBTQ hate crimes since 2012.

The International Commission of Jurists, in partnership with Outright International, a New York-based LGBTQ advocacy group, in 2022 held a workshop with the Lesotho judiciary that focused on human rights for the LGBTQ community.

The judiciary noted LGBTQ people exist, but acknowledged there is no local jurisprudence on their rights, even though the country’s constitution guarantees the right to respect private and family life and freedom from discrimination.

Religious and cultural norms, like in many African countries, play a pivotal role in how society perceives the LGBTQ community. Many people in Lesotho disregard the existence of LGBTQ people, even though the government is trying to make room for the acknowledgment of LGBTQ rights.

Outright International Africa Advocacy Officer Khanyo Farise says the judiciary’s active engagement with the LGBTQ community is an important step towards ensuring LGBTQ rights are upheld.

“Judges and judicial officers play an important part in ensuring access to justice for LGBTIQ+ people, but also have an important role in producing judgments which can advance their human rights,” said Farise.

ICJ Africa Communications and Legal Officer Mulesa Lumina said though the ICJ is encouraged by these developments, particularly the willingness of judiciary members to understand the plight of the community, LGBTQ people continue to face harassment, discrimination, abuse and violence because of their actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity.

“We will continue working with partners, such as the People’s Matrix and Outright International, to ensure the enforcement of the country’s obligations under international human rights law, which entitle LGBTIQ persons to the full range of human rights without discrimination,” said Lumina.

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India

LGBTQ Kashmiri students targeted after terrorist attack

26 people killed in Baisaran Valley on April 22

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Baisaran Valley in Kashmir (Photo by SB Stock/Bigstock)

Baisaran Valley, a Kashmiri meadow surrounded by pine trees, was bustling with Hindu tourists on April 22.  

Families were wearing phirans (traditional Kashmiri clothing) for photos, while ponies trotted along the Lidder River. Gunfire shattered this peace when five terrorists opened fire. They targeted Hindu men, checking their religion before shooting them. The terrorists killed 26 people — 25 tourists, including a Navy officer who was on his honeymoon — and Syed Adil Hussain Shah, a pony guide who died protecting others. More than 20 others were wounded.

The Resistance Front, a Pakistan-based group tied to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terrorist organization, initially claimed responsibility for the attack, but retracted the claim three days later, fearing India’s diplomatic and military response that eventually included the tightening of borders and the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.

The attack sparked outrage across India.

Misdirected anger targeted Kashmiri students in Dehradun, Jalandhar, and other cities in which LGBTQ people face heightened vulnerability. They endured harassment, evictions, and threats of violence. The J&K Students Association reported more than 1,000 distress calls, and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah urged states to protect them.

Activists across India have rallied to help LGBTQ Kashmiri students in their cities.

Harish Iyer, a prominent activist, offered shelter and legal assistance to them in Mumbai, the country’s financial hub.

ā€œReligion is a tool used by terrorists worldwide to ensure that their victims divert their energy towards fighting each other while  they continue to focus on our destruction,ā€ said Iyer. ā€œIt is a tried and tested formula designed to divide us while we should all be united against them.ā€

Iyer told the Washington Blade he saw videos of Kashmiri students being targeted.

ā€œHate gets compounded when you look at it from several intersectional points,ā€ he said. ā€œTo belong to identities like queer, Muslim, and Kashmiri makes one vulnerable. In a moment where hate reveals its fang, it is important that love opens its home too.ā€

Iyer said he received a couple of phone calls from queer people in northern India who had been attacked. He offered to pay for their travel to Mumbai or any other city, but they eventually told him they found a place where they would be safe.

ā€œIt just reinstates our collective faith in humanity and asserts that there are kind people everywhere,ā€ said Iyer. ā€œThe community stands united with each other against terror.ā€

He stressed ā€œintersectional realities make us most vulnerableā€ and ā€œthat’s why we need to rise up and be the best of who we are as queer humans.ā€ Iyer told the Blade that other queer activists in India are trying to do just that, albeit silently, by opening their homes to people who have been targeted. 

ā€œAnish Gawande, the queer spokesperson of the Nationalist Congress Party, has been working hard to restore peace in the valley,ā€ he noted. ā€œHe has been doing good work in the Kashmir Valley for several years now. I truly admire his courage and candor. But truly, it’s the everyday queer Indian who advocates for kindness who matter.ā€ 

ā€œThey would not be known to all and sundry, may not have a fan following or several followers on social media, but they have it in them to open their homes and their world to those affected,ā€ added Iyer. ā€œSometimes, love doesn’t cause outpouring visibility, sometimes it silently protects and creates homes with a beating heart.ā€

Gawande has worked in Kashmir since 2012, running a program for Kashmiri journalism students and an art residency. 

He acknowledged to the Blade the increase in violence against Kashmiri students. Gawande also said LGBTQ Kashmiri students face unique challenges because they are a ā€œminority within a minority.ā€

ā€œIn these difficult times, several activists like Harish Iyer have come forward to offer their support to young Kashmiri LGBTQ students who are afraid for their own safety,ā€ he said. ā€œThe intent of the terrorists was to divide us — we cannot let their strategy succeed. I am incredibly grateful to so many members of the queer community and allies who have stepped forward to help all Kashmiris in this difficult time.ā€

Gawande said he has been supporting the efforts of student leaders, including Nasir Khuehami of the J&K Students Association, who has been leading efforts to ensure Kashmiris across India remain safe and secure. Gawande also said government officials, politicians, and law enforcement are working to protect the students.

ā€œI am grateful to both the central government and state governments across the country for their prompt assistance in this matter,ā€ said Gawande. ā€œIn these difficult times, when emotions run high, we remain united against hate.ā€ 

ā€œToday, attempts are being made to create divides between Indians and Kashmiris, between Hindus and muslims,ā€ he added. ā€œWe must stand up against such attempts in one voice.ā€ 

Gawande last weekend traveled to Srinagar, the Kashmiri capital, and led multi-faith prayer services in temples, churches, gurdwaras (Sikh places of worship), and dargahs (shrines) ā€œto mourn those who lost their lives in Pahalgam and to send out a message of communal harmony.ā€

ā€œWhen attempts are being made to divide us on religious grounds, we must unite through religion,ā€ he said.

Gawande also spoke directly to Kashmiri LGBTQ students, urging them to reach out to the J&K Students Association. He said his New Delhi home and his party’s offices across the country are ā€œalso available to those who need a safe space or a place to grieve.ā€

ā€œIn this time of grief, where we are all mourning the dastardly loss of life, it is important to stand up for what is right,ā€ said Gawande. ā€œQueerness has taught me that we have two kinds of families — those of birth and of choice.ā€

ā€œKashmir holds a special place in my heart, and when the well being of those who I consider family is under threat, there is no question of even thinking about any potential jeopardizing of my own safety,ā€ he added.

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The Vatican

Potential Pope Francis successor views homosexuality as an ‘abomination’

Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu is archbishop of Kinshasa

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Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu of Kinshasa, Congo. (Screen capture via Vatican News-English/YouTube)

One of the cardinals who is reportedly in the running to succeed Pope Francis has described homosexuality as an “abomination.”

Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, the archbishop of Kinshasa in Congo, made the comment in a Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar statement in response to Francis’s 2023 decision to allow priests to bless same-sex couples.

“Within the church family of God in Africa, this declaration has caused a shockwave, it has sown misconceptions and unrest in the minds of many lay faithful, consecrated persons, and even pastors and has aroused strong reactions,” wrote Ambongo in the Jan. 11, 2024, statement he signed. “The African Bishops’ Conferences emphasize that people with a homosexual tendency must be treated with respect and dignity, while reminding them that unions of persons of the same sex are contrary to the will of God and therefore cannot receive the blessing of the church.”

The statement notes several Biblical passages that “condemn homosexuality, notably Lv. 18:22-23 where homosexuality is explicitly prohibited and considered an abomination.”

“In addition to these biblical reasons, the cultural context in Africa, deeply rooted in the values of the natural law regarding marriage and family, further complicates the acceptance of unions of persons of the same sex, as they are seen as contradictory to cultural norms and intrinsically corrupt,” it reads.

Ambongo, who is president of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar, in 2024 said homosexuality “does not exist” in Africa outside of “a few isolated cases.” La Croix, a French Catholic newspaper, reported he made the comment during a rally that took place outside of Kinshasa.

ActualitƩ, an online Congolese newspaper, reported Ambongo reiterated his opposition to homosexuality and same-sex unions in his 2023 Christmas message.

“Same-sex unions are not accepted in our church,” he said. “Although homosexuals should be treated with respect, compassion, and sensitivity, homosexuality remains a moral disorder contrary to natural law and our African culture.”

JƩrƩmie Safari, executive director of Rainbow Sunrise Mapambazuko, a Congolese LGBTQ rights group, criticized Ambongo when he spoke with the Washington Blade.

“This cardinal is very homophobic; very, very homophobic,” said Safari.

Francis died on April 21.

The Vatican’s tone on LGBTQ and intersex issues softened under the Argentine-born pope’s papacy, even though church teachings on homosexuality did not change.

Francis, among other things, described laws that criminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations as “unjust” and supported civil unions for gays and lesbians.

Francis last August met with two African activists — Clare Byarugaba of Chapter Four Uganda and Rightify Ghana Director Ebenezer Peegah — at the Vatican last August. Francis in 2023 visited Congo and South Sudan.

Juan Carlos Cruz, a GLAAD board member who survived clerical sex abuse in Chile, is among the hundreds of thousands of people who attended Francis’s funeral that took place at the Vatican on April 26. Transgender people were among those who greeted Francis’s coffin at Rome’s St. Mary Major Basilica before his burial.

The conclave to select Francis’s successor will begin on May 7.

The Associated Press notes Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin; Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, the former archbishop of Manila in the Philippines; Archbishop of Bologna (Italy) Cardinal Matteo Zuppi; and Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest (Hungary) Cardinal Peter Erdo are among those who are considered potential Francis successors.

“He [Erdo] has been reluctant to take positions on several of the government’s policies that divided society in Hungary, such as public campaigns that villainized migrants and refugees and laws that eroded the rights of LGBTQ+ communities,” said the AP.

New Ways Ministry, a Maryland-based LGBTQ Catholic organization, in an April 21 statement said it hopes “our loving God, who is a God of justice and equality, will continue to bless us by extending Francis’ welcoming and inclusive message in the next papacy.”

Anti-LGBTQ Catholic figures offered a far different view.

Doug Mainwaring — described as a “marriage, family, and children’s rights activist” — on Monday described Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah as “the only conclave participant to counter LGBT ambiguity and lies of Francis pontificate” in a post that LifeSiteNews, an anti-LGBTQ Canadian Catholic website, published.

“There is just one cardinal about to enter the conclave who is crystal clear, fearless, and uncompromising with the truth when it comes to pastoring those of us who experience same-sex attraction and gender confusion: Cardinal Robert Sarah,” wrote Mainwaring. 

Mainwaring also highlighted anti-LGBTQ comments that Sarah made in his 2019 book.

ā€œI think that the first victims of the LGBT ideology are the persons who experience a homosexual orientation. They are led by its militants to reduce their whole identity to their sexual behavior,ā€ Sarah wrote, according to Mainwaring. ā€œI beg Catholics who are tempted by homosexuality not to let themselves be shut away in this prison of LGBT ideology. You are a child of God by baptism! Your place is in the church, like all Christians. And if sometimes the spiritual combat becomes too hard, fraternal charity will support you.ā€

Catholic League President Bill Donohue on April 22 urged the cardinals to consider an African counterpart to succeed Francis.

“If the cardinals decide to choose someone who is a traditionalist, they can do no better than to look to Africa. It is home to the most brilliant orthodox clergy in the world,” said Donohue. “If the cardinals want to choose someone more like Francis, they will look to Europe.”

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