(Gambian President Yahya Jammeh)

The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia and commonly known as Gambia, is a country in Western Africa. It is the smallest country on the African continental mainland and is bordered to the north, east, and south by Senegal, and has a small coast on the Atlantic Ocean in the west. And, its leader, President Yayha Jammeh, is certainly a proud homophobe, and would likely be equally proud of winning this week’s title of blurbberry’s Homophobe of the Week. 

Jammeh is not unique as a leader thinking that there is no place in society for queer marriage. He has, like American President George Bush or Australian PM Kevin Rudd, employed religious doctrine to disqualify unions between same sex persons as equal to those of heterosexuals. “What Allah says in the Qur’an is very clear, which is man can marry woman, but not woman to a woman or man to man,” Jammeh recently said. 

In March, President Jammeh declared “zero tolerance” for either racism or gay-marriage. Speaking at the time at the opening of the National Assembly, he claimed Gambians are not hostile to anybody, “but there is one thing that we will not also accept and that is where a man marries a man. “Despite all democracies, that is a democracy that we will not accept in this country. A man marries a woman. That is what we know and that is what is in the Quran. If you don’t believe in that and you are in this country, you are in the wrong place,” he posited.

And let us tell you, he means it. According to the criminal code from 1965, Gambian laws declare homosexuality an “unnatural offence” and is considered illegal. According to Articles 145 and Article 147 states homosexual acts, even in privacy, are considered acts of gross indecency and can be punished with imprisonment for up to 7 years. In other words, no gay love in public or in private. 

But, Jammeh has recently taken it one step further. Last Thursday, he issued a decree demanding  gay men and lesbians leave the country within 24 hours or face “serious consequences.” 

In a victory speech, President Jammeh warned homosexuals, drug dealers, thieves and other criminals, to leave Gambia or face serious consequences if caught. The President equally warned all those who harbour such individuals to kick them out of their compounds, noting that a mass patrol will be conducted on the instructions of the IGP and the director of the Gambia Immigration Department to weed bad elements in society.

“Any hotel, lodge or motel that lodges this kind of individuals will be closed down, because this act is unlawful.” he said. ”We are in a Muslim dominated country and I will not and shall never accept such individuals in this country.”

We weren’t kidding… President Jammeh is a proud homophobe. We have one question here at blurbberry… what’s with all these ex-British colonies? Why are they so homophobic? Is England to blame?