Friday, April 18, 2014
ADDIS
ABABA, Ethiopia — In his Easter message this week, Patriarch Abune
Mathias, head of Ethiopia’s Orthodox Church, vowed to fight
homosexuality, saying it will bring destruction to the world.
Mathias warned
that the “sin that burnt Sodom and Gomorrah in Ethiopia not only erodes
the holiness that God has bestowed upon Ethiopians, but it will bring
destruction and damage, rather than development and growth.
“To prevent this I call upon all Ethiopians to fight this grand sin of Sodom persistently,” he added.
“I
would like to confirm to all Ethiopian that the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church will fight this grand sin fiercely to the end,” he said. “It is
outside of God’s and Nature’s laws. Everyone should resist it. It is
unnatural. It is condemned in the bible.”
Last year, the Patriarch posted on Facebook that “homosexuality is not natural and we in Ethiopia must not accept this ungodly behavior.”
Meanwhile, a planned anti-gay rally by Weyneye Abune Teklehaimanot, a group associated with the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, has been cancelled, according Redwan Hussein, a government spokesman.
Redwan
also stated that a bill to add gay sex to a list of crimes not eligible
for presidential pardons has been dropped by Ethiopia’s legislators.
Ethiopia’s harsh anti-gay laws punishes same-sex acts with up to 15 years imprisonment.
A 25-year jail term is given to anyone convicted of infecting another person with HIV during same-sex acts.
In
addition, under its anti-terrorism law anyone who states what the
government deems terrorism (which can include human rights criticism)
can be imprisoned for 20 years, without a warrant.
Ethiopia’s
anti-advocacy law bars charities and nongovernmental organizations that
receive more than 10 percent of their funding from abroad from
participating in activities that advance human rights and the promotion
of equality.
LGBT
advocates say the laws make it impossible for any health services,
charity, advocacy or even clubs or bars to openly support or cater to
Ethiopia’s LGBT population
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