LGBTQ+ people go into hiding in Senegal as hundreds are arrested

A HRW afirmou que as prisões foram realizadas com base em informações encontradas em telefones, alegações de terceiros ou buscas em domicílios privados, enquanto os advogados temem representar os detidos.

Photograph: APView image in fullscreenHRW said arrests had been made based on information found on phones, third-party allegations or raids on private premises, while lawyers fear representing those detained.

Photograph: APGlobal developmentLGBTQ+ people go into hiding in Senegal as hundreds are arrestedAt least 320 people detained for ‘acts against nature’ after law criminalising homosexuality toughened, HRW reports.

About this contentSarah JohnsonThu 15 Oct 2026 04. 00 EDTLast modified on Thu 15 Oct 2026 04. 02 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleMass arrests, forced HIV testing and barriers to legal representation are part of an escalating crackdown against LGBTQ+ people in Senegal, according to a new report.

More than 320 individuals have been arrested and detained on allegations of “acts against nature” since February, according to HIV Justice Network, an organisation quoted in the Human Rights Watch (HRW) report.

Among these, at least 84 were charged with “voluntary HIV transmission”, solely on the basis of their HIV status.

The intensifying crackdown comes as the law criminalising homosexuality in the country was toughened earlier this year. On 11 March, Senegal’s parliament amended the penal code, doubling the maximum prison term for consensual same-sex relations to 10 years.

The new law introduced penalties of up to seven years in prison and a fine of 500,000 to 5m CFA francs (£650–£6,500) for promoting homosexuality, or supporting or financing LGBTQ+ people and organisations.

Larissa Kojoué, pesquisadora de direitos LGBTQ+ na Human Rights Watch, disse: “As pessoas LGBTQ+ estão sendo forçadas a reduzir suas atividades normais … por medo de prisão e aumento do estigma.”.

Senegal’s government should call a halt to this crackdown, which threatens everyone’s rights.”.

A atividade sexual entre pessoas do mesmo sexo foi criminalizada no Senegal em 1965, mas a hostilidade contra indivíduos LGBTQ+ tem crescido nos últimos anos. Durante a campanha presidencial de 2024, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, que acabou vencendo a eleição, e o ex-primeiro-ministro Ousmane Sonko prometeram fortalecer as leis que criminalizam relações entre pessoas do mesmo sexo, enquadrando a questão como prioridade nacional.

Arrests of men and women have happened all over the country. The police say they have arrested people based on information extracted from seized phones, third-party allegations or raids on private premises.

As mudanças no código penal tiveram um efeito de intimidação sobre os advogados, que disseram que temiam representar pessoas por medo de serem processados, segundo o relatório.

Médicos disseram ao Human Rights Watch que as mudanças estavam desencorajando as pessoas de procurar testes e tratamento para HIV.

While there was a 49% fall in new HIV infections in western and central Africa from 2010 to 2022, sub-Saharan Africa remains disproportionately affected by the virus, with 64% of all people living with HIV globally.

Ver imagem em tela cheia. Manifestantes pedem repressão a pessoas LGBTQ+ em fevereiro na capital do Senegal, Dakar. A questão foi promovida como prioridade nacional nas eleições.

Photograph: Zohra Bensemra/ReutersSylvie Beaumont, a consultant with HIV Justice Network, said she had received anecdotal evidence that HIV clinics had seen a drop in attendance.

She said while the law criminalising deliberate HIV transmission was not part of the reforms to the penal code this year, there had been an “unprecedented” rate of arrests in recent months.

She labelled the charges “nonsensical” because it was reported that most people had either only discovered their status upon arrest; were arrested with condoms; or were on treatment that renders transmission of the virus impossible.

The report said police had breached confidentiality of ongoing criminal investigations involving suspected LGBTQ+ people by leaking details to the media, which reported personal and confidential information, including HIV status – exposing individuals to social stigma, family rejection, threats and violence.

LGBTQ+ people interviewed by Human Rights Watch said the crackdown was instilling fear among their community, and causing them to feel anxious and depressed. Many have gone into hiding, restricted their movements or relocated; some have left the country.

The report pointed out that the crackdown flew in the face of domestic and international laws that guaranteed the right to a fair trial, privacy and non-discrimination.

The changes to Senegal’s penal code is part of a trend across sub-Saharan Africa towards more punitive legislation directed against LGBTQ+ people.

Desde que criminalizou as “relações sexuais com uma pessoa do mesmo sexo” em fevereiro, o Níger registrou dezenas de prisões. Foi a primeira vez na história do país que a homossexualidade foi criminalizada, e seguiu a introdução de leis e códigos penais semelhantes nos vizinhos Mali e Burkina Faso nos últimos dois anos.

Em maio, Gana, que já proíbe o sexo gay, aprovou legislação que criminaliza “atividades” LGBTQ+. O projeto de lei, que ainda não foi assinado pelo presidente, é a última iteração da legislação proposta pela primeira vez em 2021.

In 2023, Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act made homosexual acts punishable by death.