MEMBER BLOG: Conversion ‘therapy’ remains prevalent in Africa. Governments must protect LGBTQ+ persons from this form of abuse.

By Yvonne Wamari and Khanyo Farisé, OutRight Action International, Africa Program

Despite homosexuality being removed from the international classification of diseases in 1990 and transgender identities being removed in 2019, the perceptions of LGBTQ+ identities as disorders persist and attempts to ‘cure’ or ‘fix’ LGBTQ+ persons continue. OutRight Action International’s global report findings indicate that conversion ‘therapy’ also referred to as sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression change efforts (SOGIE CE) are prevalent and take on various forms, including exorcism, drinking herbs, rape and other forms of sexual assault, prayer, or laying of hands for healing as well as beatings and coercion into relationships, sex or marriage. These practices are also known as conversion ‘therapy’.

Conservative cultural and religious ideologies and restrictive legal environments that criminalize consensual same-sex relations legitimize these harmful practices and embolden the practitioners of conversion ‘therapy’. In Outright Action’s 2019 report, 76% of respondents indicated that religious leaders perpetrated conversion ‘therapy’. The organisation’s partners in Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa, in their national reports on the nature, extent and ipact of conversion ‘therapy’, also found that more than 50% of LGBTQ+ respondents indicated that they have been subjected to these practices.

These harmful practifes continue to be perpetrated despite the negative impact they have on LGBTQ+ lives. Survivors of SOGIE CE indicated that they experienced physical and mental health challenges, including anxiety, self-hatred, suicidal ideations, and depression. The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment stated that these “procedures are rarely, if ever medically necessary, lead to severe and life-long physical and mental pain and suffering and can amount to torture and ill-treatment.” 

The American Psychological Association has affirmed that there is insufficient evidence to support the use of psychological interventions to change sexual orientation, in fact, these interventions are likely to do harm. Similarly, the Independent Expert on Protection Against Violence and Discrimination Based on SOGIE reported that these practices inflict “severe pain and suffering, resulting in long-lasting psychological and physical damage.”  

Though African States have made some progress in promoting and protecting human rights, these laws are not applied equally. Conversion ‘therapy’ continues to violate the rights of LGBTQ+ individuals to express themselves freely, access the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health and, be free from violence, torture, or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. Governments have an obligation to ensure the promotion, protection, and fulfilment of human rights for ALL its citizens. 

The research of OutRight Action International and its partners not only provides much-needed localised evidence on the nature, extent, and impact of conversion ‘therapy’, but also outline recommendations on what needs to be done to protect the LGBTQ+ community against these practices towards the eradication of conversion ‘therapy’ in Africa. 

To see true and lasting change, key actors and human rights defenders should play an active role in amplifying the voice of survivors and the LGBTQ+ community to advocate for the eradication of these harmful practices. Leveraging on pronouncements such as Resolution 275 of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights which safeguards the rights of LGBTQ+ persons by calling upon States to end all acts of violence, abuse and discrimination by State and non-State actors in Africa, Governments should also support civil society organizations in engaging religious leaders and faith-based organizations to raise awareness of the implications of these practices. In addition, policymakers should coordinate with medical and mental health professionals and associations, to develop codes of ethics that prohibit conversion ‘therapy’ and establish disciplinary measures against practitioners who violate these codes. 

Our next webinar in the Mental Health For All series is coming up Tuesday 22nd February, where our expert panel will explore The Effects of Conversion Therapy on the LGBTQIA+ Community.