DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — President Barack Obama on Thursday
praised the Supreme Court's ruling on same-sex marriage as a "victory
for American democracy" but clashed with his African host over gay
rights in a sign of how far the movement has to go internationally.
Obama said recognition of gay unions in the United States should
cross state lines and that equal rights should be recognized
universally. It was his first chance to expand on his thoughts about the
ruling, which was issued Wednesday as he flew to Senegal, one of many African countries that outlaw homosexuality.
Senegalese President Macky Sall rebuffed Obama's call for Africans to give gays equal rights under the law.
"We are still not ready to decriminalize homosexuality," Sall said,
while insisting that the country is "very tolerant" and needs more time
to digest the issue without pressure. "This does not mean we are
homophobic."
Obama said gay rights didn't come up in their private meeting at
the presidential palace, a mansion that looks somewhat similar to the
White House. But Obama said he wants to send a message to Africans that
while he respects differing personal and religious views on the matter,
it's important to have nondiscrimination under the law.
"People should be treated equally, and that's a principle that I think applies universally," he said.
A report released Monday
by Amnesty International says 38 African countries criminalize
homosexuality. In four of those — Mauritania, northern Nigeria, southern
Somalia and Sudan — the punishment is death. These laws appear to have
broad public support. A June 4 Pew Research Center survey found at least
nine of 10 respondents in Senegal, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda and Nigeria
believe homosexuality should not be accepted by society.
Papi Nbodj, a 19-year-old student who stood by the road to the
presidential palace to see Obama's arrival, said homosexuality is
against the religious beliefs of most in Senegal.
"We are in a Muslim country, so we certainly cannot have it here,"
he said. "And for me it's not OK to have this anywhere in the world."
Sall sought to reassure Obama that gays are not persecuted in
Senegal. But under Senegalese law, "an improper or unnatural act with a
person of the same sex" can be punished by up to five years in prison.
Ndeye Kebe, president of a human rights organization that works
with homosexuals called Women's Smile, disputed Sall's contention that
gays are not discriminated against.
"I know of around a dozen people who are in prison for
homosexuality as we speak," she said. "There wasn't any real proof
against them, but they were found guilty and they are in prison."
And as recently as February of 2008, police rounded up men
suspected of being homosexual after a Senegalese tabloid published
photographs of a clandestine gay wedding in a suburb of Dakar. Gays went
into hiding or fled to neighboring countries, but they were pushed out
of Gambia by the president's threat of decapitation.
As for Wednesday's court ruling, Obama said he's directing his
administration to comb through every federal statute to quickly
determine the implications of a decision that gave the nation's legally
married gay couples equal federal footing with all other married
Americans.
He said he wants to make sure that gay couples who deserve benefits
under the ruling get them quickly. Obama said he personally believes
that gay couples legally married in one state should retain their
benefits if they move to another state that doesn't recognize gay
marriage.
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