11 August 2011
by Bridgette P. LaVictoire

Violent hate crimes against lesbians and gays are not uncommon in South Africa, or in many nations. This includes many “corrective rapes”. This is where a man or a group of men assault a lesbian or a woman who they think is a lesbian and brutally sexually assault them in the belief that all the women need is a good dick inside of them in order to no longer be lesbian.

While homosexuality is illegal and even brutally repressed in much of Africa, South Africa is one of the few places where not only is it legal, but so is same-sex marriage. There are thirteen nations where homosexuality is fully legal, and several others where lesbianism is legal. South Africa is the only country in Africa where marriage is equal, and lesbian and gay couples can adopt children.

The nation’s constitution bans all discrimination against lesbians and gays, but that does not stop hate crimes. The panel is suppose to address the inequities between the law and the reality. It will be made up of six people from the LGBT Community and a further six representing the Judiciary, Police and Department of Social Development.

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