Senegal PM Criticises Western Influence, Defends Tougher Same-Sex Law
Ousmane Sonko says Senegal will resist external pressure as government strengthens penalties under new legislation.
Senegal’s Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko has defended the country’s tougher same-sex legislation and criticised what he described as Western attempts to influence social values, insisting Senegal will maintain its own legal and cultural positions.
Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko has criticised what he described as Western efforts to promote values that do not align with Senegal’s social and cultural positions, while defending the country’s newly strengthened law on same-sex relations.
Speaking before lawmakers on Friday, Sonko argued that Western nations use their global influence and media reach to promote homosexuality internationally, saying Senegal would maintain its own policy direction.
“There are eight billion human beings in the world, but there is a small nucleus called the West which, because it has resources and controls the media, wants to impose it (homosexuality) on the rest of the world,” Sonko said.
The remarks come weeks after President Bassirou Diomaye Faye signed legislation increasing penalties related to same-sex relations in Senegal.
Under the revised law, acts classified under existing legal provisions as “acts against nature” now carry prison sentences ranging from five to 10 years, up from the previous one to five years.
The legislation also introduces penalties of between three and seven years for individuals found guilty of promoting or financing same-sex relationships.
Debates around LGBTQ issues have remained highly sensitive in Senegal in recent years, with supporters of the law arguing it reflects local social values, while critics have raised concerns about its implications for human rights and civil liberties.
Before becoming prime minister in 2024, Sonko had publicly supported stricter legal measures on same-sex relations.
