Gambian Foreign Minister said that the West African countries cut off all dialogue with the European Union rejecting attempts to block the EU countries to take advantage of the provision of financial assistance to African countries to Gambia forced to withdraw from the adoption of the new, stricter laws against homosexuality.
Foreign Minister Bala Garba Jahumpa said the Gambian President Yahya Jammeh -Ex military officer who came to power during a coup in 1994 - will not allow foreign countries to use financial aid as leverage on the policy of his government.
Debatable new law
Last month, Jammeh has signed a law introducing a criminal offense of "aggravating homosexuality", which will in some cases be punishable by life imprisonment. The definition applies to cases such as homosexual relations with a person under 18, or cases where a person who has HIV practiced homoseskualne sex. Attacks on Gambia arrive at a time when the European Union should in December to make a decision on how to Gambia grant aid for development programs in the amount of 150 million euros (186 million US dollars), which was called into question because of the poor condition of the protection of human rights in the Gambia.
"Gambian government will not tolerate any negotiations with the EU as well as with any other international bloc countries or nation on the issue of homosexuality," he said in his statement to state television, Minister of Foreign Affairs Jahumpa. "We will no longer maintain a dialogue with the EU either directly or through subregional, regional and international groups to which we belong."
Jahumpa said that homosexuality is "ungodly" and contrary to African tradition and that the Gambia to join together with other countries on the continent to oppose it. The disapproval of homosexuality is widespread in most conservative countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The politicians who make laws in Uganda said they would bring up to Christmas revised law against homosexuality, according to which the anticipated long prison terms for homosexual sex after the first version of the law canceled due to legal technicalities.
UN: Gambia violates fundamental human rights
Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the new Gambian law violates fundamental human rights and called for its repeal. The international organization dealing with human rights, Amnesty International claims that a dozen people were arrested because of this law. In a very emotional statement Jahumpa minister accused the European governments that have allowed the death of thousands of African immigrants who wanted to join the EU, calling it "racist genocide". He said that Gambia will not participate in the Economic Partnership Agreement (Economic Partnership Agreement) which provides for otkvaranje economies of West Africa free trade regime with the European Union.
"Gambia will never be part of the so-called. Economic partnership agreement because it is designed in a way that it continues the same exploitation and impoverishment of the African continent that has been so far, "he said. "We would rather die than allow ourselves to be colonized twice." The decision Gambian government came after similar measures against homosexuality made in many African countries, despite the pressure of Western countries about gay rights.
After lawmakers Uganda announced stricter penalties for homosexuals, the World Bank has delayed the payment of $ 90 million loan intended for the Ugandan health system. Delay loans followed a gesture of Norway and Denmark which have announced the withdrawal of its donations Uganda because of the controversial law. Other donors have also threatened to do the same while the United States said it is reviewing its relations with the country. Laws directed against homosexuality in Africa have sparked harsh criticism from the government of Western countries that are threatened by withholding financial support to those African countries which are laws for which persecute homosexuals. However, in the final report of the Extraordinary Synod of the family who recently held in the Vatican stated that Western countries put pressure on poor countries conditioning the provision of financial support for the adoption of laws that legalize "marriage" between persons of the same sex.
source Narod.hr
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