There is rare and good news coming from Zimbabwe on gay rights. One of the two activists arrested in a May raid on the offices of Zimbabwe's only LGBT rights group—and later tortured—has been acquitted of all charges.
"Ignatius Muhambi, an accountant for Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe was arrested together with office administrator Ellen Chademana during the raid. 'He was found not guilty,' Muhambi's lawyer Jeremiah Bamu told AFP. 'The prosecution failed to establish a case against him at the close of their submissions on Friday and the magistrate acquitted him.' Prosecutors said police found in the offices a DVD showing men having sex. Initially the pair was also accused of insulting Mugabe, but that charge was never formally filed. Chademana was expected to appear in court separately on Monday."
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and President Robert Mugabe have rejected calls to include gay rights in the new constitution. Mugabe once infamously described gays as "worse than dogs and pigs" and recently apologized to dogs and pigs for the comparison.
Last week, Zimbabwe's First Lady Grace Mugabe joined the homophobic hate chorus and slammed gays as "satanic and taboo."
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