A pastor
in Swaziland / eSwatini has been suspended from his church after being accused
of being a bisexual.
The Times of Swaziland newspaper on
Monday (4 March 2019) published details of an audio recording it said included
the pastor from Siphofaneni ‘proposing love to another man’.
The Times did not name the pastor or the
church for ethical reasons.
It
reported, ‘Subsequently, elders of the church suspended the pastor from all
church activities, including ministering the Word of God.’
The
pastor reportedly locked the church which forced people to worship under a
tree.
Churches
in Swaziland where homosexual acts are illegal are at the lead in encouraging discrimination
against LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex) people.
In the past Melusi Simelane, spokesperson
for Rock of Hope, an LGBTI advocacy group, said, ‘It is worth noting that
many in the religious circles, continue to spew hate speech and show utter
disregard for the deeds of the Lord, by being judgmental and expelling some of
the LGBTI community from their places of worship.’
Gender Links, an advocacy group
based in Johannesburg, South Africa, reported LGBTI people in Swaziland
expressed concern about the lack of respect shown to them because of their
sexual orientation.
Sifiso
Nhlabatsi, writing on the website of Gender Links, an advocacy group based in
Johannesburg, South Africa, said LGBTI people in Swaziland had tried
to engage churches to sensitize them about their rights but had little success.
Nhlabatsi wrote about a meeting
held between pastors and members of the LGBTI community in August 2018. ‘During
the meeting which was attended by over 20 pastors and I was also part of,
pastors made it clear that they cannot allow gay people to “flaunt” their
behaviour in front of congregants. Pastors said what is being done by LGBTI
community is “demonic” and through prayer maybe can be healed.’
Nhlabatsi added, ‘The meeting
which started off on a good note ended on a sour note as the two parties had a
clash of opinions. Senior Pastors in the country did not even bother to attend
the dialogue.’
Swaziland is a tiny landlocked
kingdom with a population of about 1.3 million people, mostly living in rural
communities. It is ruled by King Mswati III who is one of the world’s last
absolute monarchs who reportedly described homosexuality as being ‘satanic.’
In May 2016 four organisations
jointly reported to the United Nations about LGBTI discrimination in Swaziland.
Part of their report stated, ‘LGBT[I]s are discriminated and condemned openly
by society. This is manifest in negative statements uttered by influential
people in society e.g., religious, traditional and political leaders.
Traditionalists and conservative Christians view LGBT[I]s as against Swazi
tradition and religion. There have been several incidents where traditionalists
and religious leaders have issued negative statements about lesbians.’
On a more
progressive note, Ark of
Joy International Ministry, a church that welcomes and supports LGBTI people, relaunched in Coates
Valley, Swaziland in December 2018.
See also
LGBT
Pride film shows what it’s like to live with prejudice and ignorance in
Swaziland
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