The gathering, which took place from 31 July to 4 August, brought together a community of 450 activists, organisers and individuals invested in the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, questioning, intersex, asexual and gender nonconforming people (LGBTQIA+) across Africa. 

Homophobia is increasing on the continent, with countries such as Uganda, Kenya and Ghana introducing harsh laws criminalising the existence of LGBTQIA+ people. 

Read more in the Daily Maverick: Uganda’s anti-gay bill sparks a surge in homophobia, media censorship and mob attacks 

A key part of the conference was to find ways of pushing back against the growing hate and to safeguard the progress made with rights for LGBTQIA+ people. 

This year signified a momentous milestone as Pride Afrique, which started as a Pan-African virtual pride celebration during the Covid lockdown, convened its inaugural in-person Pride event.

“The fact that the conference happened is a success. It is proof that we can organise our own space, and that we are not as powerless as we are made out to be,” said Marline Oluchi, the 2023 chairperson of Pride Afrique.

Inclusivity

There was a significant effort to be inclusive and representative of the issues faced by members of the LGBTQIA+ community across the spectrum. The event started two days before the main preliminary sessions with six pre-conferences running concurrently and homing in on LBT women, gay, trans and intersex, as well as donor and interfaith sessions. 

“Pan Africa Ilga created a space for us so that we could decide what we wanted the conversations to be about,” said Oluchi. 

Even within the LGBTQIA+ movement, there are still conversations about inclusion that need to be addressed.

Sexism, transphobia and discrimination against intersex people are some of the issues that need to be tackled to make the movement more inclusive.

“Feminism underscored the need to ensure that no one is left behind. There is a lot to be learned from feminism in our approach within the LGBTQIA+ community as we ask ourselves how to make sure no one is left behind. 

“There is so much to be done within ourselves and for ourselves,” said writer and activist, Kevin Mwachiro.

“LBT women have been instrumental in the women’s rights movement and the gay liberation movement as well. Unfortunately, the movement has been sidelined because often when gay men organise, they sideline lesbian issues. 

“In Nigeria for example, it happens that when gay people want to throw parties, they invite lesbians so that if the police raid the party, they could say they are our girlfriends. We have not been able to benefit from the movements,” said Remi Makinde, interim executive director at The Initiative for Equal Rights (TIERs).

Makinde was one of the organisers of the LBT preconference and tells me she made a presentation on the LBT movement in Nigeria, citing the incident when lesbians went to the assembly after the president said gay people don’t exist. Among other initiatives, TIERs conducted inclusive research on violence against all women, including lesbians, the disabled, and sex workers.

Intersex people also came together in solidarity and made a declaration for the African Intersex Movement that will pioneer the unique challenges and issues faced by intersex people. 

The youth pre-conference, organised by the Centre for Health Education and Rights, allowed young LGBTQIA+ people to engage in discussions about their role in policy-making, activism and community development. 

Mental health and self-care came up in the interfaith pre-conference and the question in that conversation was, how do we take care of ourselves, as we continue to fight for our dignity and safety? There was a recognition of the diversity of our needs. 

“The pre-conferences served to help people find their own voices. The conversations were focused on the unique challenges within the region, and looked at the kind of changes that people want and made it possible for them to share ideas and find ways of collaborating,” said advocacy manager at Ilga Robert Akoto.

There was also a desire to revive the Coalition of African Lesbians, which fuelled excitement for the work that lies ahead.

“LGBTIQ organisations are not just here to distribute HIV medication and organise workshops for sexual health. While that is still important, this conference exposed that funders’ contributions cannot have a one-size-fits-all approach, because our battle includes securing economic opportunities for members of the community, especially in hostile environments where people are discriminated against based on sexual orientation, expression and identity,” said OutRight’s communications manager, Matuba Mahlatjie.

Memorial to siblings lost

One of the most poignant moments from the conference, according to many in attendance, was the queer candlelight memorial for all queer siblings lost.

“The memorial was profound because we had people coming out on stage naming the names of the people they have lost. There was much-needed healing that needed to take place because we have not done that as a community, where people can share the pain and mourn losing people, some of whom were significant in the fights for our rights. 

“It was reflective and powerful,” said Oluchi, who was part of the Pride Afrique team that organised the memorial.

“There were a few moments I had to hide away to cry and digest my experience of Pan Africa Ilga, even as it was ongoing. It was quite an emotional and psychological revival for me and others. And we partied afterwards, which was fire. 

“Seeing the dance floor being lit by queer bodies across several races and generations dancing to Psquare, Davido and Yemi Alade, in faraway Mauritius, was a tear-jerking experience for me.”

The conference provided a crucial space for the African LGBTQIA+ community to engage with each other and with funders, organisers, and allies. Partnerships were forged, collaborations were initiated and strategies were developed.

There were both virtual and physical networking opportunities and time was set apart on the programme for people to network and collaborate in their mobilising for the rights of our community. The venue had a lot of meeting spaces and spots – there was also an app, Whova, which made it easier for delegates to find and connect with each other.

For example, when the Pride Afrique chair, Marline, realised that Lady Phil, the co-founder of UK Black Pride, the organiser for Ugandan Pride, and other pride organisers were in attendance, she went on the app and sent them messages asking for a meeting. She identified some donors who were at the conference, invited them to the meeting and they all attended. They spoke about the different challenges and opportunities that pride presented in their various regions.

“We even got some funding for one of our projects. We got into a partnership with GALZ, an association of LGBTQIA+ people in Zimbabwe, right there, and agreed on the next steps. We could come together, mobilise and create initiatives. The space allowed that for everyone,” said Oluchi. 

“It was a different space from what I am used to. People were willing to engage and really talk,” added Oluchi.

Safety and solidarity

Pride Afrique organised a workshop on reimagining safety and solidarity, and part of the objective of this gathering was to come up with a strategy document on safety and solidarity that could be used as a guide for the LGBTQIA+ movement on the continent.

The document highlights the importance of collaborative efforts to counter the rising tide of homophobic laws on the continent. We have been talking about safety for many years now, so it was important for us to talk about how safety has changed over the years, and you could see people redefining what safety meant for them.

“The more we keep hiding, the more in danger we are. For the first time, people were not in spaces to just complain about what is not working. You could see that people are tired of hiding … they want to know what’s next,” Oluchi said.

Although homosexuality remains criminalised in Mauritius under Criminal Code 1838, the conference received the support of the Mauritius government via the minister of foreign affairs and the minister of gender equality and family welfare giving their blessing for the gathering, according to Pan Africa Ilga’s Akoto.

People coming from countries where it remains dangerous to be queer could indicate that they did not want to be in the media to protect their identities from being revealed. 

For the many queer people on the continent who exist in conditions where their self-expression could lead them to jail or to be killed – with little to no solidarity since many people choose to remain in the closet for their safety – the conference offered them a space to be themselves and to experience community. 

“I had not been around queer folk for so long. We can be and we are seen within our African space. The sense of family that permeated the event was undeniable and reinforced the solidarity in the fight for the dignity of LGBTQIA+ people,” said journalist and queer activist Kevin Mwachiro.

“Mauritius offered us that,” Mwachiro went on. “During the party, I remember the fabulous expression and freedom of people who could not express themselves freely in their country … it made the space all the more important. It was clear that embracing one’s identity and celebrating ‘queer joy’ were essential aspects of our journey.”

Read more in Daily Maverick: Queer in Africa: An inclusive, unapologetic and gay-loving continent is here

Although none of the attendees I spoke to experienced homophobia, one mentioned multiple encounters of racism, with a hotel staff member saying that perhaps guests were not used to seeing that many black people in hotels.

“Even in the most hostile countries where there is no protection of rights, people continue to organise to create a window of opportunity to liberate themselves and others. I spoke to people from countries you would never imagine there would be someone who’d dare organise as a member of the LGBTQ community. And this, on its own, is a pushback against a narrative that we don’t exist, because the PAI conference is testimony that we exist and we are everywhere,” said OutRight’s Matuba.

Storytelling emerged as a powerful tool, with Kevin Mwachiro sharing his experiences on normalising LGBTQIA+ existence in Africa through authentic narratives.

“I shared my personal experiences as a storyteller, people respond to authentic stories. Nipe Story is a storytelling podcast that has short stories from writers from across the continent – fictional stories that not only tell queer fiction, but African queer fiction. 

“I believe that fiction can help us imagine what queer love could look like,” said Mwachiro.

“The most important thing is that we are on the right track toward owning our narrative and strengthening the movement. We need to continue taking advantage of our civil liberties and wake up to the growing violence so that we can strengthen our efforts. 

“If we don’t work together, if we don’t take up space, the very few spaces we still have will be taken away from us. Everything needs everyone’s involvement,” said Akoto.

The Ilga World Conference 2024, the largest global gathering of LGBTQIA+ change-makers, will be hosted in Cape Town from 11-15 November by Iranti and Gender Dynamix. DM