Category Archives: Rainbow
sexuality in ancient Egypt
Sexuality in ancient Egypt was open, untainted by guilt. Sex was an important part of life – from birth to death and rebirth. Singles and married couples made love. The gods themselves were earthy enough to copulate. The Egyptians even believed in sex in the afterlife. Sex was not taboo. Even the Egyptian religion was filled with tales of adultery, incest, homosexuality and masturbation… with hints of necrophillia! Masculinity and femininity itself were strongly linked with the ability to conceive and bear children.
..Revel in pleasure while your life endures
And deck your head with myrrh. Be richly clad
In white and perfumed linen; like the gods
Anointed be; and never weary grow
In eager quest of what your heart desires –
Do as it prompts you...
Homosexuality and Lesbianism
There is little evidence for lesbianism in ancient Egypt. There are two possible mentions, one being The Book of the Dead in Papyrus Nestanebtasheru (c. 970 BC) which mentions that she had never had sexual relations with the wife of a male – however, this may be because the text was mistakingly copied from the male version of the Book of the Dead instead of the correct female version. The other is related to a book of dreams, the Papyrus Carlsberg XIII (c. 2nd Century AD), which shows that lesbianism was at least recognised late in Egypt’s history:
If a married woman has intercourse with her, she will have an ill fate, and one of her children will [lacuna] … If a female has intercourse with her, she will lie.
— Manniche, L. 1987, Sexual Life in Ancient Egypt, pp. 102-103
There is, however, much more evidence for homosexuality, other than that occurring during the battle of Horus and Set:
Ancient Egyptian culture is shrouded in mystery due to its age and the paucity of sources which detail the average Egyptians’ life, and what does exist focuses more on the elite than the layman. This study delves into a highly intimate and secretive aspect of Egyptian life: same-sex desire. Through an examination of primary source documents and artifacts from Egypt, and existing Egyptological research, this study will catalogue homosexuality amongst males in Ancient Egypt in an effort to better understand the origins of documented queer history. The results of this study indicate that while same-sex desire amongst males was officially condemned, in practice the attitude seemed to be more accepting. Understanding that modern hetero-normative relationships do not monopolize history, and that in many cultures the family unit was not bound by modern day constructs is crucial for queer youth and other members of the queer community and better contextualizes our understanding of history.
— Clayden, A., (pers. comm., 2013)
Depictions of possible homosexuality
Nyankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep kissing.
Nyankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep
The best known case of possible homosexuality in Ancient Egypt is that of the two high officials Nyankh-Khnum and Khnum-hotep. Both men lived and served under pharaoh Niuserre during the 5th Dynasty (c. 2494–2345 BC).[1] Nyankh-Khnum and Khnum-hotep each had families of their own with children and wives, but when they died their families apparently decided to bury them together in one and the same mastaba tomb. In this mastaba, several paintings depict both men embracing each other and touching their faces nose-on-nose. These depictions leave plenty of room for speculation, because in Ancient Egypt the nose-on-nose touching normally represented a kiss.
Egyptologists and historians disagree about how to interprete the paintings of Nyankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep. Some scholars believe that the paintings reflect an example of homosexuality between two married men and prove that the Ancient Egyptians accepted same-sex relationships.
Other scholars disagree and interprete the scenes as an evidence that Nyankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep were twins, even possibly siamese twins. No matter what interpretation is correct, the paintings show at the very least that Nyankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep must have been very close to each other in life as in death.
King Pepi II and his general officer Sasenet
A well known story, dating back to the Middle Kingdom and handed down on three time apart from one another documents, tells about an anonymous citizen, who comes to the audience hall of king Pepi II (here named by his birth name, Neferkarê). The citizen wants to lament about an unnamed circumstance, but the king does not want to listen to the laments, so he orderes his royal musicians to drown the strangers speech with noise. Disappointed, the stranger leaves the palace. When this happens several times, he orders his friend, the high official Tjeti, to follow the king. The king in turn is frequently leaving the palace during the night. Tjeti finds out that king Pepi II keeps visiting his loyal general officer Sasenet for several hours, then returning back home.
The chapter in which king Pepi II visits his loyal general officer is subject of passionate discussions. Espacially one certain phrase stays in the centre of investigations: the text says, that “his majesty went into Sasenet’s house and did to him what his majesty desired.”. The phrase “doing what ones desires” is commonly an flowery paraphrase to describe sex. For this reason, some scholars are convinced, that the papyrus reveals king Pepi’s homosexual interests and his same-sex relationship to his general officer.
But other scholars are instead convinced, that the precarious passage is merely an allegoric pun to religious texts, in which the sun god Râ visits the underworld god Osiris during the middle four hours of the night. Thus, king Pepi II would be taking the role of Râ and Sasenet would take the role of Osiris. The phrases about “doing what ones desires” would therefor be overrated and misinterpreted.
A Ramesside period ostracon, depicting a homosexual couple in coitus (two men having sex together)
Horus and Seth
A further famous story about same-sex interactions can be found in Papyrus Illahun, dating back to the Middle Kingdom. It contains the nearly completly preserved story of the Osiris myth and the legendary fight for the throne of Egypt between Horus and Seth. The chapter in question reports that Seth was unutterably jealous about his young nephew Horus, because Horus was very young and popular. He got literally pampered by the other gods. Seth instead had very few companions and he was comparatively unpopular because of his choleric and vindictive behaviour. As a result, Seth tried to either chase away or even kill Horus, no matter what the cost. When Seth constantly fails, he plans to humiliate his rival so badly, that Horus would be banned from Egypt for ever. Seth invites Horus to some kind of slumber party and convinces the teenage Horus to drink more booze than Horus could normally cope with. When Horus is boozed, Seth seduces him to sleep over the night in one bed together. When lying together in one bed, Seth grabs Horus and rapes him. But Horus has tricked Seth, his drunkenness was staged. He catches Seth’s semen with his hands and hides it. At the next morning, Horus runs to his Mother, Isis, to tell her what happened. Isis is first speechless with rage and disbelieve. Then she decides to return the like on Seth: she cuts off Horus’ hand and lubricates Seth’s semen on Seth’s own favorite food (Egyptian lettuce). Totally clueless, Seth eats the manipulated lettuce, then he goes to the divine court to inform on Horus. At first, the divine judges swear at Horus, but when Thot, the scribe of the court, calls for Seth’s semen to come out of the body of Horus, the semen instead comes out of the body of Seth. Seth blushes in embarrassment and shock, then flees. Horus is acquitted.
The famous rape of Horus by his jealous uncle is also subject of passionate discussions. While most scholars agree that the papyrus clearly describes rape, it must remain open, if it actually describes an homosexually driven deed. Background of the dispute are Seth’s motives: he does not love Horus, in contrast, he hates his nephew and the rape was clearly performed to humiliate Horus. The only common ground between the rape and homosexuality is that the act was of same-sex nature.
But some scholars are not so sure and point out, that Seth was often credited with questionable sexual interests. For example, Seth once tried to seduce his own sister Isis. In another story, taking place before the great fight for the throne, Seth makes clear overtures to Horus. Basically, Seth was often mentioned in sexual contexts that could be interpreted as “unnatural” or even “perverted”.
Ancient Egyptian views
It remains unclear, what exact view the Ancient Egyptians fostered about homosexuality. Any document and literature that actually contains sexual orientated stories, never name the nature of the sexual deeds, but instead uses stilted and flowery paraphrases. While the stories about Seth and his sexual behaviour may reveal rather negative thoughts and views, the tomb inscription of Nyankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep may instead proof, that homosexuality was likewise accepted. Ancient Egyptian documents never clearly say that same-sex relationships were seen as reprehensible or despicable. And no Ancient Egyptian document mentions that homosexual acts were set under penalty. Thus, an straight evaluation remains problematic
Further Information about Sexuality in Ancient Egypt
- Homosexuality in Ancient Egypt – Wikipedia
- Eros in Egypt – David O’Connor
- Family and Sexual Mores in Ancient Egypt – Daniel Kolos
- Drink, drugs and sex – André Dollinger
- Adult Life in Ancient Egypt – Digital Egypt
Abdulaziz Al-Qahtani
An Interview with Abdulaziz Al-Qahtani
profiled Abdulaziz Al-Qahtani’s “An Intimate Geography” exhibit at the Lahd Gallery. an interview with the artist himself.
Sara for MMW: I noticed that you never explicitly mention Islam in your work. Was this intentional?
Abdulaziz Al-Qahtani: I wanted to move away from Islam, because I do not like to classify based on religion. I do this because I feel as though everyone is spiritual, and that is the best way to be in touch with your inner self. I also wanted to steer clear of stereotypes.
MMW: While the hijab was not a
focus of your work, it was still featured. What was it meant to symbolize, or what was its role?
AQ: I showed a hint of everything—religion, belief, culture. Hijab is just a part of what many people wear. I am not really concerned with the political issues around hijab, I just used it in a playful way. The hijab was supposed to represent being Arabian or Middle Eastern.
MMW: What was the central message to this particular exhibition?
AQ: I wanted to critique the double standard that exists. People are expected to follow cultural rules and guidelines like sheep, yet they believe that they are open-minded because they wear ‘cool clothing’. Some believe that things such as drinking or wearing different clothing makes you “progressive” but I disagree with this.
MMW: One criticism I had of the exhibition was that you state that this is meant to represent the Middle East, but I felt as though it might be more representative of the Gulf (your own background). What is your response to that?
AQ: I was critiquing gender roles in general. While there might be a Gulf based theme, I feel as though many of the ideas can be applied to the entire Middle East, such as arranged marriages, or gender roles and responsibilities within a marriage.
MMW: What was your motivation for this particular exhibition?
AQ: Throughout the years, I’ve seen so much. Many of the double standards or taboos are seen, but not spoken about in a formal way. Usually spoken about in whispers, and so I was trying to show the human side of the Middle East, through a visual critique.
MMW: So, the divide between public and private played a large role in your work?
AQ: Yes, I wanted to bring such things out in the open, because they should be discussed.
MMW: So from what you are saying, you seemed to have a particular aim for visitors from Middle Eastern backgrounds. What was your intended impact on non-Middle Eastern visitors?
AQ: I wanted to address an issue. Terrorists are the minority, and there are other people in the Middle East. People are still human, and still impacted by pop culture—and many of the same struggles and cultural experiences.
MMW: Earlier, we spoke a bit about double standards. Could you elaborate on some of these double standards in relation to Islam?
AQ: I am critical of how people allow traditions to change and manipulate religion. Some can make religion appear to be harsh because they read what they want from their respective holy books, and do not look at the entire picture. When religion is manipulated according to tradition, that is when I think many misunderstandings occur, and abuse of religious texts for personal gain. As I mentioned before, I do not like to delve into religion, because I think it is far more important to be spiritual within yourself, rather than focusing on classifying oneself within a particular religion.
MMW: What is the future direction of your work?
AQ: In the future, I will be doing a more photographic series, featuring film and illustrations. I have a controversial perspective that I use to make my argument, and this will be central to my future work.
Malcolm X and Sudan
This article was originally published in Sudanese Community and Information Centre – London.
Malcolm X (El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz) is by far one of the most influential activists of our time and increasingly so among the current Muslim generation that has gained ‘a new kind of consciousness’. In a time where Islamophobia has been on the rise in the West since 9/11 and Muslims are seeing their civil liberties being violated, Malcolm X remains a source of inspiration of strength, critical observation of the establishment and need for greater grassroots mobilisation.
For many people within and outside of the US context, Malcolm X holds a great place of respect and admiration as a man who advocated not only the rights of African-Americans but for the oppressed people of the third world, in Africa, the Middle East and South East Asia. Even Rosa Parks whose act of refusing to move from a white only seat triggered the civil rights movement, stated that Malcolm X – not Martin Luther King who capitalized on her act – was her hero.
Throughout his active political years with the Nation of Islam until his death, Malcolm X had a few, but interesting, encounters with Sudan and Sudanese. He travelled to Sudan in 1959, visiting Khartoum and Omdurman, he spoke of Sudanese in glowing terms saying, ‘’I was impressed the most by the Muslims of the Sudan. Their religious piety and hospitality are unmatched anywhere. I really felt in heaven and home there.’’
“There is no better than adversity. Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance next time.”
Malcolm X
Malcolm X in Sudan with Sheik Ahmed Hassoun, 1959.
In 1962 Malcolm X felt increased resentment from high ranking members of the Nation of Islam (NOI) in Chicago for his public recognition, and they were suspicious of his aspirations of eventually succeeding Elijah Muhammed. Malcolm sought to deflect these feelings by reducing his media appearances and promoting Elijah Muhammed’s cult by defending the NOI against orthodox Muslims. From the outset, the Muslim community in America looked at the NOI as a heretical cult but rarely spoke against it.
One of the first Orthodox Muslims to publicly criticise the NOI was a Sudanese student at Pennsylvania University called Yahya Hayari. Malcolm responded, both privately and publicly, with a letter to the Pittsburg Courier against Hayari saying it’s ‘’difficult for me to believe that you’re a Muslim from the Sudan’’, he further aggressively defended Muhammed and accused Hayari of sounding ‘’like a brainwashed, American negro’’ that had ‘’been in Christian America too long,’’ yet Hayari continued prompting Malcolm.
In the same year, another Sudanese student from Dartmouth College called Ahmed Osman, who attended services at No. 7 Mosque (the active Harlem Mosque that Malcolm himself set up) engaged with Malcolm during a question and answer session. He directly challenged Malcolm on Elijah Muhammed’s prophetic claims and the assertion that whites were literally ‘’devils’’. Osman was ‘’greatly impressed by Malcolm’’ but not by his answer. Afterwards, the two exchanged letters and Osman sent literature from the Islamic Centre in Geneva with which Malcolm was grateful for and requested more. Despite Osman’s insistence for Malcolm to join true Islam, he was unprepared. These engagements between Yahya, Ahmed and Malcolm must have helped lay the tracks for Malcolm’s exploration of orthodox Islam as he would later incorporate their discourses against the NOI.
In chapter 18 of Malcolm’s autobiography edited by Alex Haley, when he discusses his Hajj and the warm exchanges with various Muslims who expressed their solidarity with the struggle of African-Americans in the US, he pointed out a Sudanese “high official’ who hugged him and said “You champion the American black people.” In Mecca, Malcolm befriended a Sudanese called Shiekh Ahmed Hassoun who taught in Mecca for 35 years, eventually served as Malcolm’s spiritual advisor, and later taught at the Muslim Mosque Inc. which Malcolm created four days after his departure from the NOI in 1964. It was Shiekh Ahmed who prepared Malcolm’s body for burial at the Faith Temple Church of God in West Harlem where he lay in state and oversaw his burial.
It’s common that Sudanese feel their country is rarely recognised or mentioned some way or another in contemporary history, however, many should take pride in knowing that Sudanese were closely involved in the inspiring story that is Malcolm X’s incredible life.
Omar Zaki is an active half-Sudanese student with an BA History degree from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and former Union Secretary for the SOAS Student’s Union. He is currently doing an MSc in Global Politics at the London School of Economics (LSE) with a focus on conflict, humanitarianism and human rights.
جيمس فرانكو يجسد شخصية مدافع عن حقوق المثليين في فيلم جديد
كشفت عدد من التقارير عن نية النجم الشاب جيمس فرانكو تجسيد شخصية “مايكل جلاتز”، أحد المدافعين عن حقوق المثليين، في فيلم جديد من إنتاج جاس فان سانتك.
وتدور أحداث الفيلم، المستوحاة من مقالة نُشرت في نيويورك تايمز، تحت عنوان صديقي المثلي السابق، حول مايكل رئيس تحرير مجلة Young Gay America والذي اعتنق المسيحية ثم أعلن عن ميوله المثلية.
يذكر أن فرانكو قد لعب الكثير من الأدوار التي تتناول قضايا المثليين كفيلم Milk وHowe
المحامية الكاميرونية أليس نكوم تفوز بجائزة لدفاعها عن حقوق المثليين جنسيا
منحت منظمة العفو الدولية المحامية الكاميرونية أليس نكوم جائزة اعترافا بجهدها في مساندة حقوق المثليين جنسيا في القارة الأفريقية. وقضت نكوم عقدا وهي تدافع عن الأشخاص المتهمين بالمثلية الجنسية.
ويحظر القانون في الكاميرون الأفعال المتصلة بالمثلية الجنسية ويعاقب القانون ممارسيها بالسجن لمدة خمس سنوات. ووصفت نكوم الجائزة، التي سلمها لها فرع منظمة العفو في العاصمة الألمانية برلين الثلاثاء، بأنها “جائزة الأمل”.
وقالت في مقابلة مع برنامج “نيوزداي” في بي بي سي إن “حياة مثليي الجنس في الكاميرون تشبه الحياة في الجحيم”. وأضافت أن مثليي الجنس يعيشون في “سجن دائم، ومضايقة دائمة، وعنف وتمييز دائمين، بداية من عائلتك وانتهاء بمكان العمل في كل مكان”.
وأصبحت المحامية البالغة 69 عاما أول سيدة سوداء تلتحق بنقابة المحامين في الكاميرون عام 1969. وتعهدت نكوم بمواصلة عملها رغم تليقها تهديدات بالقتل وتحذيرات من مسؤولين بالحكومة من أنها قد تواجه السجن.
ومنيت الحملة المدافعة عن حقوق المثليين جنسيا في أفريقيا بنكسة في الأسابيع الأخيرة بسبب سن قانون جديد في أوغندا يعاقب بالسجن المؤبد لمن يرتكب أعمال “المثلية الجنسية الخطيرة” كنا يجرم أيضا “الترويج للمثلثة الجنسية”.
ولاتزال أفريقيا تتسم بالقارة التي يوجد بها أقسى قوانين مناهضة للمثلية الجنسية. ففي موريتانيا وجنوب السودان ومناطق من نجيريا والصومال، تصل عقوبة ممارسة أفعال المثلية الجنسية إلى الإعدام
Sexuality , Politics And Religion and Society
Although the many achievements and success of the on-going and previous LGBTQI movements and organizations in the West, and Europe the LGBTQI communities in other parts such as Africa still deprived of basic human and social rights. Intolerance and discrimination towards homosexuality is especially in conservative religious countries, such as Sudan is one of the countries that been severely oppressing the LGBTQI communities by criminalizing all homosexual activities or relationships.
In Sudan, homosexuality is clearly in the Islamic Sharia law defined as illegal in the judicial system. According to Article 148 of the 1991 penal code, the law also punishes anyone convicted for anal sex. This applies to both between two men or heterosexual couples. Once convicted, individuals face punishment is lashing, imprisonment and death penalty.
Legal Situation
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) persons in Sudan face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity is illegal in Sudan.
The Criminal Act, 1991 provides as follows
Law regarding same-sex sexual activity
Same-sex sexual activity is illegal in Sudan. The Criminal Act, 1991 provides as follows:[1]
Article 19. Attempt is the commission of an act which apparently indicates the intention to commit an offence, where the offence has not been consumated, due to a cause beyond the offender’s will.
Article 20. (1) Whoever attempts to commit an offence shall be punished with imprisonment, for a term, which may not exceed one-half of the maximum term prescribed for that offence….
(2) Where the penalty of any one offence is death …, punishment for attempt thereof shall be imprisonment, for a term, not exceeding seven years.
Article 148. (1) There shall be deemed to commit sodomy, every man who penetrates his glans, or the equivalent thereof, in the anus of … another man’s, or permits another man to penetrate his glans, or its equivalent, in his anus.
(2)(a) whoever commits the offence of sodomy, shall be punished, with whipping[Note 1] a hundred lashes, and he may also be punished with imprisonment for a term, not exceeding five years;
(b) where the offender is convicted for the second time, he shall be punished, with whipping a hundred lashes, and with imprisonment, for a term, not exceeding five years;
(c) where the offender is convicted for the third time, he shall be punished, with death, or with life imprisonment.
Article 151. (1) There shall be deemed to commit the offence of gross indecency, whoever … does any sexual act, with another person not amounting to … sodomy, and he shall be punished, with whipping, not exceeding forty lashes, and he may also be punished, with imprisonment, for a term, not exceeding one year, or with fine.
(2) Where the offence of gross indecency is committed in a public place … the offender shall be punished, with whipping not exceeding eighty lashes, and he may also be punished, with imprisonment, for a term, not exceeding two years, or with fine.
Article 152. (1) Whoever commits, in a public place, an act, or conducts himself in an indecent manner, or a manner contrary to public morality, or wears an indecent, or immoral dress, which causes annoyance to public feelings, shall be punished, with whipping, not exceeding forty lashes, or with fine, or with both.
(2) The act shall be deemed contrary to public morality, if it is so considered in the religion of the doer, or the custom of the country where the act occurs.
Under this penal system, being homosexual in Sudan is high risk, and if an individuals is labeled as a homosexuals, they will be un erasable stigma which brings lots of serious consequences and will face severe punishment according to the Islamic not only that but also experience social rejection which further brings about serious social and economic consequences. Since homosexuality is generally considered as abnormal psychological behavior and a sin, homosexuals are usually effects there educational opportunities and employment. And even from their family and community and often times even murdered by so called ‘honor killings’ which is generally done by close family members. For this reason, many LGBTQI people in Sudan constantly attempt to change their sexuality to meet the societal expectations and it is a very rare occurrence when one talks about or reveals his/her real sexuality most of them hide their identity and forced to lead a double life.
Implementation of the penal code
Regardless of the frequency of the implementation of so called sodomy laws, their more existence usually results in a worsened situation for LGBT persons. In Sudan, the accusation of being homosexual is sometimes used to blackmail somebody or to smear political opponents.
Case 1
The case of the 12 Freedom Sudan members
Ali, a co-founder and the president of Freedom Sudan (Sudan LGBT association) wrote about his own terrifying story in the organization website, in April 2009 and while Ali and 11 of his friends (2 women and 9 men) were holding a private party in the residency of one of them, agents from intelligence agency raided their party and caught them all and then took them to an unknown place. There, as Ali tells, each of them was put in solitary confinement “cells of 1.5 meters long walls” he says under highly unsanitary conditions and he was deprived from water and food for 2 days straight.
Case2
The case of the 19 Cross-dressing men flogged in Sudan for being ‘womanly’
A famous incident took place In August 2010
when 19 men were flogged publically and fined after being caught by Alnezam Alaam (Public Order Police) in a private party celebrating the wedding of two homosexual men in Khartoum. This group of young men have been publicly flogged in the Capital Khartoum after they were convicted of wearing women’s clothes and make-up. The court said the 19 men had broken Sudan’s strict public morality codes.
Case3
Sudanese Police arrests models after mixed gender fashion show
Sudanese police arrested more than two dozen people overnight as they emerged from the capital’s first ever mixed-gender fashion show.
One young model, among those asked to appear before the prosecution he said after his release that he was insulted by prison guards.
“In prison, the guards called me ‘you gay bitch’,” said the man who asked that his name not be published. “In our culture this is a really bad word. It is humiliating.
Case 4
In the 4th of December 2012 Karary Criminal Court issued under the chairmanship of Maulana Imam Juma Abdullah a strict penalties against three young gay men, the first of them convicted of crimes outrageous acts of seduction and possession of materials and exhibits against public morality. The court convicted the second and third defendants of committing a crime of sodomy under Article (841) of the Criminal Code, and caused the first convicted and send him to prison for (7) years for the crime of seduction after it ascertained from his involvement according to evidence submitted to the court.
Case 5
In 19th of February 2013 9 gay men were arrested, two of them accused of hassle and scandalous acts under Article 77/152 Sudanese criminal law and 5 of them accused of possession of indecent material under Article 153.
The 9 men were celebrating in privet apartment in Khartoum when they got arrested. The police report mention that they found shisha, coffee , drums and mobile phones belonging to the defendants that contains obscene movies and pornographic images which had been captured of the defendants.
Social Situation
Negative attitudes towards homosexuality is common in a countries like Sudan. Strong religious and social traditions in many places in the country severely threaten LGBT community members. Living in fear or uncertainty, the violations of human rights, informal discrimination and lack of power that Sudanese LGBT people are subjected to often cause a high level of anxiety and psychological stress among them.
The religious influence
The religious influence on the Sudanese society a country in which more then 60% percent of the population are Sunni Muslims with the dominance of Maliki school teachings, homosexual activities are understood in the context of the Qur’an. The story of the “people of Lot” (also known as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah) cited in the Qur’an is especially important to explain how homosexuality is perceived and treated in Sudan. According to this story, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by the wrath of God because their citizens engaged in “lustful” homosexual acts. This story has been used in many Islam teachings, and even though different Islam schools offer different answers to the question of how homosexuality should be treated, homosexuality in the Islamic world is widely viewed as synonymous with deviance, pathology and unforgivable sin that will trigger God’s wrath. Among the schools, the Maliki school which is dominant in the Sudan is well-known for its extreme view on homosexual identities and activities. Its teaching that argues that death should the only answer to homosexuals explains the current treatment and the status of the LGBTQI population in the country. Under the name of religion and god, the society denies the existence of LGBTQI population and continuously controls individual’s sexuality both through state law and shame in the private sphere.
Government Attitude:
The Sudanese Government voted against ILGA (International Gay and Lesbian Association) application for ECOSOC status in the UN in 2002.Sudan was also one of the countries that voted directly against the UN declaration on sexual orientation and gender identity in 2008.
In November 2010, Sudan voted on an amendment to remove sexual orientation out of a UN document calling on governments to prevent extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions. The document was adopted despite objections that Homo- and Transphobia so many times are the motives for extrajudicial killings, and that the removal of the definition will make it even more difficult to ensure that states live up to their legal obligations.
Rainbow Sudan 
