The First Lady of homophobic prayers

Kenya's Rachel Ruto was condemned after saying even talking about LGBTQ rights was like 'throwing our morals into the dustbin'

Rachel Ruto has criticised even talking about LGBT rights in Kenya 

THE FIRST Lady of Kenya has declared nationwide prayers against homosexuality across the country and denounced it as a threat to the family unit.

Rachel Ruto delivered the homophobic prayer after the Supreme Court ruled that an LGBT rights group being banned from officially registering themselves was wrong.

The National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC) sought to be recognised in 2013, but the move was blocked by the country’s NGO board.

The newest ruling by Kenya’s highest court means the decision cannot be overturned.

The judges said that “it would be unconstitutional to limit the right to associate, through denial of registration of an association, purely on the basis of the sexual orientation of the applicants,” adding that they still believe gay sex should be illegal.

Ms Ruto led prayers in east-African after the seminal ruling for the country during a Sunday church service.

“We should not even try to talk about LGTBQ. This is a conversation we should not even have in our country because accepting it is like throwing our morals into the dustbin,” said the first lady.

“We want to strengthen the family institution where we have a father, a mother and children. LGBTQ is forbidden even in the Bible and the African culture. Let us hold on to family values.”

Homosexuality remains illegal under British colonial-era laws that make gay sex punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

The Supreme Court determined that denying the LGBT community the right to register themselves as a lobby group would go against their right to association, in accordance with the Kenya constitution.

The ruling came under attack from religious leaders in evangelical churches and Lady Ruto who criticised the move.

The First Lady of Kenya had previously established a Faith Diplomacy Office and announced it will be reinforcing a prayer culture throughout the country, saying that it would “ensure family values are protected.”

“I would like us to pray on matters of family. The family has become an institution that has been very much attacked…,” she is understood to have said in local media reports.

The declaration of nationwide prayers comes after the tragic killing of LGBTQ rights activist Edwin Chiloba.

The 25-year-old model was found dead stuffed inside a box on a roadside in Eldoret, Kenya.

Police are continuing their investigations into the motivations behind the killing, but LGBT rights groups demanded justice for Chiloba after a series of attacks against the LGBTQ community in the country.

African is arguably undergoing a reckoning of anti-gay laws after MPs in Uganda re-introidcued a new hard-line bill against the LBTQ community. Homosexuality in the country is already punishable by life imprisonment, but the new anti-LGBT law calls for the death penalty for those who partake in gay sex.

During a press conference in South Africa, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni was asked by a reporter if he would be willing to meet with the gay community in his country before laughing at the suggestion.

Mr Museveni later appeared on CNN where he was asked if he personally disliked homosexuals, he replied: “Of course. They are disgusting. What sort of people are they? I never know what they are doing, I’ve been told recently. What they are doing is terrible.

 

After facing pushback for the country’s anti-LGBT laws, he hit back and said to “respect African societies and their values. If you don’t agree, just keep quiet.”

LGBT activists continue to criticise both Kenya and Uganda over the recent remarks regarding their community.

Since the Supreme Court decision, Kenya’s attorney-general said that the government will challenge the court’s decision, insisting that the ruling didn’t lie with courts but through public consultation.

The court ruling : “Despite gayism being illegal (in Kenya), they have a right of association.”