round-up gays, urges nujoma

March 2001: President Sam Nujoma has urged regional leaders to identify gays and lesbians in their communities so that they can be arrested, the daily Namibian reported.

Speaking at Okahao in the Omusati region Nujoma re-emphasized the message he gave at the University of Namibia on March 19 2001 when he told students that homosexuals should be arrested, imprisoned and deported. Nujoma called upon Regional Governors, Councillors and traditional leaders in the North to single out gays and lesbians and common criminals in their areas. He said they should be condemned by the whole nation and arrested.

"Traditional leaders, Governors see to it that there are no criminals, gays and lesbians in your villages and regions. He went on to sat that "we in Swapo have not fought for an independent Namibia that gives rights to botsotsos (criminals), gays and lesbians to do their bad things here." At the weekend Amnesty International criticized Nujoma's comments on gays and lesbians and said the vilification and persecution of people for their sexuality was a violation of fundamental human rights.

The President also hit out at Namibian women who fall in love with foreigners and went on to urge Namibian parents to tell their children not to sleep with foreigners. "I have children and if it happened that my child comes to me and tells me she or he is going to marry a foreigner, I will advise her or him not to do so.

Nujoma reiterated his call for Namibians to return to the institution of traditional marriage as a means of combating HIV/AIDS. His calls have caused consternation among some church leaders in the North who do not recognize the practice.

Yesterday Nujoma said traditional marriages had been discouraged by missionaries and should be revived so that Namibian communities return to their traditional values and norms." "If we do not go back to our traditional marriage culture and practices this killing disease of HIV/AIDS will continue to kill our people. "Nujoma argued that traditional marriages would prevent sex before marriage and lead to monogamy-thus reducing the spread of HIV-AIDS.