Global Human Rights Hub fellows blog

By: Dominik Drabent I Jan. 22, 2024

When discussing human rights and its violations, one can never look at these discourses in isolation from other events occurring. Somalia has not only been plagued by famine, floods, and violence, but the attacks on journalists, the postponement of a National Human Rights Commission, and the abuse of children stand exemplary for the large-scale issues Somalia has in regard to human rights violations. The Civil War that started in the 1980s and 90s has brought turmoil to the lives of many Somalis, and this is especially true for queer Somalis.

According to the Equality Index for LGBTQIA+ rights, Somalia is one of the worst-scoring countries, second to Afghanistan. Article 409 of the Somali Penal Code criminalizes sexual acts between consenting adult partners of the same sex and makes these acts punishable with up to three years of imprisonment. In the regions of Somaliland in the Northwest, homosexuality is punishable with the death sentence. Similarly, this is also the case in the Southern areas of Somalia, which are under the Al Shabaab rule. Al Shaabab is an Islamist group based in Somalia that formed in the early 2000s and aims at overthrowing the central government to establish an Islamic state that follows their version of sharia law, which would have devastating consequences for girls, women, and queer people.

In addition to legislation, the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is widespread in Somalia and serves as a tool to control women's sexuality, including those who identify as queer, which directly intersects with anti-LGBTQIA+ attitudes.

Somalia is not in isolation from these human rights violations. Its regional neighbors also violate the rights of humans within their borders. While not subject to the death penalty, homosexuality is criminalized in Kenya and Ethiopia and highly stigmatized in Djibouti. Lately, these countries have experienced a surge in anti-LGBTQIA+ sentiments. Similarly, FGM is practiced to varying degrees in these countries as well as a form of sexual control and policing.

These human rights violations happen within a context that directly impacts how human rights play out. In Somalia, climate change and its aftermath in the form of droughts and floods influence politics and sharpen the fights over resources. These natural disasters are often a main reason people migrate. The limitations of freedom of speech hinder a change in societal perceptions on topics such as queerness and FGM. Furthermore, girls’ and women's rights are tied to the control of their bodies and sexuality, which, in turn, also impacts queer Somalis and their lives. Thus, for some, it leads them to make the difficult decision to leave Somalia.

However, migration decisions might not always be based on sexuality or gender non-conformity. Additionally, the new contexts, even though different from those in Somalia, have their own challenges and infringements on human dignity for queer Somalis. With this brief overview of the current situation in Somalia and the experiences of some queer Somalis, it becomes clear that human rights often intersect with other events, such as natural disasters.

There Is More to It Than Simply Anti-LGBTQIA+ Legislation

In 2022, over 43,000 people died from the drought in parts of Somalia. Simultaneously, climate change impacts, such as intense flooding, hit Somalia hard. These climate-related events lead to internal displacement and prevent children from attending school and receiving education. According to the United Nations Migration Agency, 3.8 million people are displaced, and many of those are women and children, but also queer Somalis.

Isha Dyfan, the Independent Expert of the United Nations, recently stated that “it is important to recall the cross-cutting nature of human rights. The struggles against armed groups, [for] peace, security, development, humanitarian action, climate change and the environment cannot be addressed in isolation from human rights.” Here, Dyfan emphasizes the intersections human rights can have with other issues. The decision to depart Somalia as a refugee can have different reasons and is not always based on one’s sexual or gender identity. However, for queer migrants, this still means that they must hide a part of themselves to avoid becoming targets for queerphobic violence and receive the support they need from their peers or their host nations to survive.

In addition to the threats that climate change and its aftermath pose to Somalia and its people, Somalia’s inter-clan conflicts and the rule of Al-Shabaab—marked by its targeted killings and purposely destructing Somalia’s infrastructure—affect the safety and security of civilians immensely. The physical terror Somali civilians are exposed to is accompanied by limited freedom of speech. Laws that target journalists and media outlets pose an imminent danger of speaking one’s mind. As Dyfan states, “The use of the Somali Penal Code against journalists and media workers and the constant threat of being arrested, held in detention, and subjected to trials, fines and imprisonment leads to self-censorship.” Journalists cannot talk about sexual and gender identities, let alone advocating for queer Somalis in Somali media.

While the Independent Expert of the United Nations pointed out that the situation of women's rights and children's rights has improved, Somalia still has substantial work to do. Somalia is amongst the top countries in the world to marry off girls below the age of 18. This occurs in conjunction with the common practice of FGM mentioned earlier. Both practices work to control girls’ and women’s bodies and their sexuality.

Thinking Bigger Regarding the Persecution of Queer Somalis

Controlling the sexuality of girls and women through heterosexual marriage is often used to enforce heteropatriarchal norms. In many cases, families attempt to forcefully and quickly marry off their daughters against their will when assumptions or evidence are present that their daughters have same-sex desires or do not adhere to Somali gender expectations. Marriage can also be an economic relief to families for various reasons, including but not limited to things such as one less family member that needs to be fed, the birth of children as a form of security when one becomes older, and various financial transactions that might come along with the act of a woman’s body being moved from the father’s responsibility to the husband’s responsibility.

These financial interests and needs are also linked to devastating events, such as floods and droughts. When a farmer's income is destroyed, or one cannot feed their family anymore, marriage might become something families consider. To have marketable daughters, their sexualities must be controlled, which is one of the reasons why FGM is so persistently practiced. An unmarried daughter becomes a burden to the family. Even for sons, forced marriages might be arranged, although less common, when rumors of same-sex desires are present. Thus, queer women are particularly at risk for forced marriages because of heteropatriarchal norms.

While forced marriages are one issue that many queer Somalis face, the limitations of freedom of speech are highly problematic for multiple reasons. First, the absent discourse of queerness from the media and the public makes it very difficult to change societal perceptions surrounding queerness and reach a broader audience. Second, it automatically bans queer Somalis into the shadows. While being out and a declaration of one’s sexuality are not always desirable nor appropriate or common for one's culture, this means that any visible queer act might result in a penalty, including imprisonment, physical violence, and death.

Thus, it becomes clear that anti-queer sentiments and anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation are intertwined with other human rights issues, and these issues intersect with other phenomena, such as climate change. While queer Somali migrants might not leave for reasons related to their sexuality or gender identity, they are always impacted by others’ perceptions of these identities.

Migration Can Have Various Reasons & Might Not Solve the Issue

Hence, while for many queer Somalis, their sexual and gender identities play one deciding factor when migrating within and outside of Somalia, it is crucial to realize that starvation, loss of property and family members, threats of violence from militias, political instability, natural disasters, and many more factors, are reason enough for a human to decide to migrate. Sexuality or gender non-conformity might not always be the first reason to make the hard decision to leave someone’s home. Of course, in cases where families conspire to forcefully marry you off or kill you in the name of honor, the imminent danger to one's life might be the main reason to leave, but often it is not.

Nonetheless, your sexuality or gender non-conformity stays with you, and even if your decision to migrate is based on another reason, the circumstances in your new place will directly interact and react with your sexual and gender identity. Many of the neighboring countries like Kenya are the number one destination for Somalis—including queer Somalis—fleeing Somalia. However, these countries do not want these refugees nor welcome them. For queer Somalis, their sexuality or gender non-conformity remains a problem. Recently, the African continent has seen a rise in anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation in many countries, including Kenya and Uganda. These places remain unsafe for queer Somalis not only due to the persecution of queer people but also because of the situations in the refugee camps, which foster violence and a lack of prospects for Somali refugees. However, human rights violations are not unique to Somalia.

Human Rights Are Never in Isolation – Not in Somalia or Elsewhere

Even when queer Somalis make it to the Global North, they are still not safe. The Global North is not immune to committing human rights violations, and anti-queer attitudes are on the rise in North America and Europe. Homonationalism places queer Muslims and, thus, most queer Somalis as a potential threat to queer liberation in the Global North. Reaching the Global North as a queer Somali refugee or immigrant is not a guarantee for safety. Rather, the forms of state violence change with the context. An intersectional feminist lens helps us understand that queerphobia, misogyny, racism, Islamophobia, and anti-Muslim racism specifically, in contexts in the Global North (e.g., the U.S.) put queer Somali migrants precariously between a rock and a hard place as they trade one set of life-threatening circumstances for another. They often find themselves in disbelief that they have not reached a “safe haven” and still experience various forms of discrimination.

Additionally, queer Somalis in the Western diaspora also experience the “Somali Struggle,” where being in the diaspora is perceived as a form of Islamic penalty for Somalis, and being queer is seen as a threat to Somali empowerment and a return to the homelands in Somalia. This leads to tensions and ostracization between queer Somalis and their Somali communities. Although migration might solve some problems, such as starvation or physical violence, it might not be the solution for all, and most queer Somalis continue to face exclusion, violence, and other harmful experiences.