ESWATINI RATED MOST UNSAFE COUNTRY FOR LGBTQI TRAVELLERS

MBABANE –  Eswatini has been rated as the most unsafe country for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQI) travellers, regarding legal rights and anti-discrimination laws.

This is according to the latest LGBTQI Travel Safety Index created by Asher and Lyric, a family and travel journalism blog and news source that has ranked 203 countries and examined LGBTQI rights for each of them. Eswatini is ranked in the top 26 countries throughout the world and also emerged as the most unsafe in Africa and ranked F on the list. The index was based on 10 ranking factors, which were whether same-sex marriage was legalised, worker protection, and protection against discrimination, criminalisation of violence and adoption recognition. In addition, the factors included the poll question; ‘is it a good place to live?’ transgender legal identity laws, trans murder rates, punishments for same-sex relationships and propaganda/morality laws.

Compared

Eswatini was compared with the Democratic Republic of Congo and received an F grade, along with Rwanda, Liberia, Burundi, Ghana, the Central African Republic, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, Chad, Algeria, Kenya, Morocco, Tunisia, Uganda, Ethiopia, Egypt, Mauritania, the Maldives, Zambia, Sudan, Tanzania, South Sudan, Gambia, Libya and Malawi, as well as the West Bank and Gaza. Nigeria emerged as the worst country in Africa and ranked as the second-most dangerous country on the index, as homosexuality could receive 14 years in prison or the death penalty and authorities have criminalised discussion of LGBTQI rights and gender expression.

According to the index, Brunei is the most dangerous country for LGBTQI travellers, while Canada, Sweden, the Netherlands, Malta, Portugal and the UK are among the safest. From other travellers, they took a deep look at LGBTQI+ rights, country by country. After 350+ hours of research, the Index reviewed all countries’ individual laws and gathered data from a variety of trusted international sources to create the definitive LGBTQI Travel Safety. When addressing this study and findings Executive Member at TransSwati Pinty Dludlu said the study was pretty much accurate. Dludlu mentioned that they were happy there was a study that has actually told their real story and has exposed how Eswatini treated the LGBTQI+ community.

Exclusion

Her sentiments were echoed by Melusi Simelane who is the founding director of Eswatini Sexual and Gender Minorities, the country’s first membership-based LGBTQI organisation, which aims to increase awareness of the social and systematic exclusion of LGBTQI citizens across the Southern Africa region. Simelane said unfortunately, they see studies conducted to measure the acceptance or safety of LGBTQI persons in 2022. He said this should be a thing of the past. When the world was more polarised than ever, and humanity was battling the devastating impacts of the climate crisis, it should be shocking that they still had to fear for their lives because of whom they were involved with.

“After reading the article about an attack on LGBTQI tourists in the past weeks, though I was abroad at the time, I lamented as this is the everyday lived experience of many like me in Eswatini. Some cases go unreported, and those that get reported rarely see the courts for prosecution. I can make an example of a young woman who, to this day, is a victim of harassment by the man alleged to have raped her. Whether it is the justice system or the society at large, it has never been more horrifying to be an LGBTQI person in Eswatini. LGBIQI citizens continue to be denied fundamental protections as enshrined in the constitution. We see this in the majority judgement of the recent ‘Register ESGM’ case, where the courts affirmed the rights of all citizens, except for LGBTQI persons,” he said.

Surprising

In addition he said it was therefore unsurprising that Eswatini remains an unsafe country for LGBTQI. He further commended the work being done by Eswatini Sexual and Gender Minorities and other civil society organisations to ensure that LGBTQI persons are afforded the right to dignity and are protected from harassment and sporadic attacks, which are sometimes state-sanctioned. “The work continues to build a socially cohesive society that affirms the rights and dignity of all,” he said. Worth noting this study comes shortly before the LGBTQI community embarks on an official celebration of their sexuality called the Pride Month which is fully commemorated on June 25, every year.

This publication recently published a story about three South African men who fully indentify as part of the LGBTQI community. The trio was attacked during the MTN Bushfire 2022 edition weekend, the matter was reported to the police and no arrests were made. The High Court recently dismissed an application for the registration of an association which sought to promote rights of gays and lesbians in the country.

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