Two 22 Year Old Zambian Men Charged For Engaging in Homosexual Acts
https://nigeriaafrica1.blogspot.com/2013/05/two-22-year-old-zambian-men-charged-for.html
Two Zambian men have pleaded not guilty during a court appearance in the small central town of Kapiri Mposhi to a charge of engaging in homosexual acts.
James Mwape and Philip Mubiana, both 22, have been charged with four counts of committing "unnatural" sexual acts.
Zambia is a socially conservative country and homosexual acts carry a jail sentence of up to 14 years.
The government has resisted pressure from campaign groups and Western governments to scrap the law.
Amnesty International called for the immediate release of Mr Mwape and Mr Mubiana, saying it regarded them as prisoners of conscience.
"The arrest of the two men solely for their real or perceived sexual orientation amounts to discrimination and it is in violation of their rights to freedom of conscience, expression, and privacy," said Simeon Mawanza, Amnesty International's Zambia researcher.
Zambia is a socially conservative country and homosexual acts carry a jail sentence of up to 14 years.
The government has resisted pressure from campaign groups and Western governments to scrap the law.
Amnesty International called for the immediate release of Mr Mwape and Mr Mubiana, saying it regarded them as prisoners of conscience.
"The arrest of the two men solely for their real or perceived sexual orientation amounts to discrimination and it is in violation of their rights to freedom of conscience, expression, and privacy," said Simeon Mawanza, Amnesty International's Zambia researcher.
