star 'outed' in anti-gay frenzy

By Jonathan Clayton (The Times online, Johannesburg)

February 8, 2006: Yannick Noah, the tennis star turned singer, is one of several well-known figures to have fallen victim to a frenzy of salacious tabloid journalism in Cameroon.

Noah, 45, a Frenchman of Cameroonian descent, who is known for his winning ways with women as much as for his success with a tennis racket, is among more than 50 politicians, entertainers and sports figures named in an anti-gay campaign that is sweeping the country.

He is joined by the popular musician Manu Dibango, the singer Rosine Ebessa, and two Cabinet ministers.

Most of those "outed" vehemently deny the allegations, which they say are based on rumours spread by enemies. The wave of homophobic articles has created an unprecedented boon for the tabloid press, which is running headlines such as "The queers are among us". The issue has sparked a furious debate about privacy and gay rights. In Cameroon, as in most of Africa, homosexuality is illegal and punishable by six months to five years in prison.

Noah was unavailable for comment yesterday. He won only one grand-slam championship - the French Open in 1983 - which has often been blamed on his philandering. He was frequently photographed in nightclubs, beautiful women on his arm, before crucial matches.

"There are going to be a lot of very surprised women, both in France and Cameroon," Tansa Musa, a journalist, said.

The campaign followed a virulent anti-gay Christmas Day homily delivered by the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Yaoundé, Victor Tonyé Bakot, who lashed out at same-sex marriages and derided gays who wanted to adopt children. He also denounced the European Union for "giving legitimacy" to unnatural acts.

The fortnightly La Météo started the campaign with a three-page feature on alleged homosexuals and their activities. Nouvelle Afrique and L'Anecdote then published similar, though slightly different, lists. The papers quickly sold out, and newsagents resorted to selling photocopies.

"It has been a long time since our circulation exceeded 5,000," François Bikoro, the Editor of L'Anecdote, said. "Since we began dealing with homosexuality, it has gone up to more than 20,000,"

His publisher, Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga, said: "Men making love to other men . . . may be normal in the West, but in Africa - and Cameroon, in particular - it is unthinkable."