Homosexual worker acquitted in Zimbabwe

A Harare court on Thursday acquitted a worker for the countrys homosexual the Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) on charges of possessing pornographic material.

The countrys Censorship and Entertainment Control Act prohibits the possession or distribution of pornographic material including pictures videos or magazines.

Dismissing the charges, Magistrate Ndirowei said the state had failed to prove that two pornographic pictures seized by the police during raid of the GALZ offices in May where Chademana works as receptionist where in her possession.

The pictures were seized from a cabinet at the reception area of the Harare offices of the GALZ, the only representative body for homosexual people in mainly conservative Zimbabwe.

It was clear that the cabinet was accessible to all staff (at GALZ) and therefore difficult for the court to conclude (that Chademana was in possession of the photos), Ndorowei ruled.

The prosecution of Chademana and another GLAZ worker Ignatius Muhambi, who was acquitted in July, was condemned local and international human rights groups, many who saw it as an attempt by law enforcement agencies controlled by President Robert Mugabe to persecute Zimbabwes homosexual community.

Mugabe is known for his dislike for gay and lesbian people who he has described as worse than dogs and pigs.

The Presidents supporters and government agencies have fought to keep the country's small homosexual community away from the public view most notably by barring them from advertising their way of life at public fora such as the Zimbabwe International Book Fair.

Earlier this year Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai publicly spoke out against homosexuality and said an exercise underway to write a new constitution for Zimbabwe should not be used to smuggle the rights of gay and lesbian people into the countrys fundamental law. ZiimOnline.

By Sebastian Nyamangambiri