U.S. Bans Tanzanian Official Who Launched Anti-Gay Crackdown

Tanzanian official Paul Makonda and his immediate family members have been banned from visiting the United States after he announced a crackdown on homosexuality.

In 2018, Makonda, the governor of Tanzania’s economic capital Dar es Salaam, announced that a special committee would seek to identify and punish homosexuals, prostitutes and online fraudsters, claiming he was trying to “cure” them.  

The U.S. State Department is now taking action against Paul Makonda “due to his involvement in gross violations of human rights, which include the flagrant denial of the right to life, liberty, or the security of persons.”

It said Makonda had “also been implicated in oppression of the political opposition, crack-downs on freedom of expression and association, and the targeting of marginalized individuals.”

According to ‘Reuters’, the State Department declined to say what specific action by Makonda “brought about the designation”, but expressed “deep concern about deteriorating respect for human rights and rule of law in Tanzania.”

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