Before I proceed, let me state for the record that I am not a homophobe; I once was but I have come to understand that our indiscretions do not make us less human. As a matter of fact, our indiscretions are an affirmation of our humanity. That being said, I believe the aspect of the new anti-gay law which criminalizes homosexual unions is timely.
However, criminalizing homosexual acts between consenting adults in their privacy is straight up ridiculous. Inasmuch as I respect Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and agree with her that Nigeria’s anti-gay law is ill-advised, sloppy, draconian and unconstitutional, I beg to differ on what spurred it on. Her statement that the debate was not home-grown is baffling at best.
To quote her, “And it (the law) is informed not by a home-grown debate but by a cynically borrowed one: we turned on CNN and heard western countries debating ‘same sex marriage’ and we decided that we, too, would pass a law banning same sex marriage.”
One then begins to wonder, does this mean that Chimamanda would rather have Nigeria isolate herself from the Global Village the world has become and hence, not make laws of interest to her? Nigeria is a sovereign nation and until the Constitution is amended to state otherwise, the Government is saddled with the responsibility of making laws that they believe to be of benefit to the Nigerian population.
For some reason, I wonder if her being out of Nigeria for so long has left her out of touch with much of what has really been going on with regard to this issue. We all know that in recent times, the agitation for gay rights has gathered momentum around the world. Majority of Nigerians I believe, were content with knowing that homosexuality was an anomaly present in our society but still are culturally light years away from viewing it as normal or embracing it.
The sudden agitation for gay rights in parts of Africa was an affront to the African way of life and like the proverbial rat trying to get the attention of a sleeping cat the backlash, though irrational was expected. The demonstrations that took place during the International Conference on HIV/AIDS 2005 in Rio de Janeiro for which Nigeria attended spurred the events that led to the law we have today.
Because of the certainty of its spread, the Nigerian Government took proactive steps to nip this trend in the bud and initiated moves to have a legislation passed against legalizing homosexual unions as early as in 2006. Several earlier attempts at sponsoring the bill failed as a result of the activities of faceless lobbyists.
I recall specifically watching a delegation of gay Nigerians living in Diaspora making a case for gay rights on the floor of the Senate sometime last year. Naturally, I like many Nigerians was baffled and appalled by this which seemed to be an open confrontation. The boldness of the delegation was frightening. My guess is that this irked not a few members of the Senate who resolved to pass the Bill in record time.
When word of the Bill got around, the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron was quoted at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia last year, threatening to withhold foreign aid from African countries that discriminated against homosexuals. The Nigerian Senate responded swiftly and bluntly too that the UK government could keep their aid.
That was one of the few moments when I was actually proud of the Nigerian Government. The Senate however, did not stop at that. They went on to produce probably one of the fastest laws to ever have come out of the National Assembly following due democratic process; a deliberate response in my estimation to showcase Nigerian sovereignty.
Chimamanda’s statement as quoted above is emotion-laden and totally unnecessary. To denigrate the Nigerian populace by that statement leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Her statement would imply that Nigerians do not have a proper grasp of the problems that face them.
With her status as a literary icon and as a Nigerian Ambassador, one would expect a certain kind of caution that would necessitate proper investigation before making such.
There is no action without reaction and for a country quite as docile as ours in terms of legislative capabilities, I really wonder if she would rather have us be overwhelmed by it before reacting as we are known to do.
*To read Chimamanda Adichie’s article, click the link below.
http://www.dailytimes.com.ng/article/chimamanda-adichie-writes-anti-gay-law
Malcolm O. Ifi
Malcolm's Blog 
Your arguments though solid ab initio are flawed in many aspects. Homosexuality is still something that is alien to a greater percentage of nigerians and though you disclaimed it i sense homophobia in this article. I agree with Chimamanda though and literally icon or not we are entitled to our opinions but this debate is rather moot. And to point out Nigeria is hardly original with anything except or false sense of pride and unapologetic corruption.
Dizzy how original do you expent an anti gay law to be?! The issue is currently a growing trend which the law quickly moved in to check & clear major doubts. Pls issues should be tackled in their various perspectives don’t make them complex by dropping the juice of curruption in a simple issue.
As for Chimamanda we are still primitive …she is the only civilised one.
Why is it so easy to hide in denial? Many claim homosexuality in UN-African, while some,( and this is the best one) pull the righteousness card.
Give me a freaking break folks! The facts are that people with different sexual orientations have been ostracized and ridiculed for years in Nigeria, and this outrageous law has not made their cases lighter.
Why is is so easy for us as a people to condemn the minority? We all seem to have very poor memories and soon, history will begin to repeat. Nigeria is governed by men with the moral fiber of alley cats, and whether we agree or not, Ms Adichie is absolutely right!
Mr Goodlucks decision is purely political. Since when did this abominable leadership listen to her people, least of all hear them? If it’s easier to the ear to accept that he is adhering to the peoples wants, then let’s all continue in this fools paradise, because it’s very comforting to many.
A government should stand for 100% of her people, period! No one is asking anyone to like homosexuals, but it is immoral and criminal to deny them basic rights, simply because you do not agree with their way of life!
There’s a sickening trend consuming our world for some time now, this trend is most common in countries who brandish holy books and quote endless scriptural references which sadly, they have conveniently misinterpreted to suit their purpose.Nigeria is very high on this list.Why in all that is good, has your government not dignified her people?Let’s talk basics here folks,food. water, light, education, need I go on?
Many are reveling in this one because both Islam and Christianity are in arms here…this is the one time they are not killing each other over something…what absolute crap!
All I know is this, anyone, who tells me that it’s fair and humane, to exclude a certain group of people from the basic rights accorded others based on religion, sexuality or gender. then I really have nothing much to discuss with that person. It will become obvious that clearly, we are not of same or like caliber. I mean this from my simplest assertion of humanity.
Ms Adichie speaks without prejudice and she speaks for me. We all have voices, some are louder than others. As hers is rather loud right now because…oh well, this is her moment, I am personally elated and thankful that she speaks very loudly for the down trodden and cast offs of our beloved country.
Thank you, dear. You’ve said it all! The anti-gay law is unconstitutional and unjust. It infringes on the fundamental human rights of gay Nigerians to private and family lives. It infringes on their rights to freedom from discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, religion or orientation. But, Nigerians are not agitating for the breach of these fundamental rights of our brothers and sisters b’c they are homophobic. Homosexuality offends their sensibilities. They act all sanctimonious but many are they who have sex with children and even animals. How ironic!
I’ve taken a hit for my stand on homosexuality. I’ve been called unchristian but the joke is on my accusers b’c they are the unchristian ones. Judging gay people wrongly and sentencing them to death by mobs is devilish and unchristian!
We are light years behind them in eveything they say. Cant they leave us alone? Maybe in 250 years. We would reconsider.
If that law was put to a vote by all Nigerians the outcome would have still been the same.
It should not be a law for Nigerians to vote about. You don’t inform Nigeria when you want to date someone if you are heterosexual so why should the government have an input in homosexual personal life. This law is going to spur a new wave of police brutality that is ,if has not started. The assumption that incarceration will change sexual orientation is simply delusional. Most of those men will not come out alive and we would wipe out humans because of our stupidity and bias. It is so easy to be disgusted by homosexual but the truth is they did not just suddenly spring up; we had tomboys and tomgirls but it never really bothered us. why now? It is so easy to remain detached and supported the anti-gay law but imagine if your brother or sister was an homosexual..would you wish him/her that?
Our misplaced priority will ruin this nation. so the next time you support anti-gay laws, ask yourself if it is homosexuality that does not make you sleep at night or the fact that we are never certain what boko haram will do next.
“I am responsible for what I write, not for what you understand.” I like that. 🙂