Senegal Arrests 71 Men In Intensifying Crackdown On Same-Sex Relations

Senegal has intensified its crackdown on same-sex relations, with 71 men arrested and charged with “unnatural acts” months after the country increased penalties for homosexual relations.

The men were brought before a court on Friday, according to the public prosecutor’s office, while charges against 28 other defendants were dropped.

More than 100 people have been charged since the tougher law was introduced, including local celebrities who were arrested over alleged homosexual acts. Some had also faced accusations of deliberately transmitting HIV, although those charges have since been dropped.

The latest arrests come amid a wider wave of anti-LGBTQ laws and enforcement measures across several West African countries.

Rights activists have condemned the crackdown, arguing that LGBT+ people are increasingly being targeted by politicians who use same-sex relations as a divisive political issue.

Senegal’s authorities, however, have continued to enforce the country’s laws criminalising homosexual relations.