From: Bjoern Skolander <[email-masked]>

The Windhoek Advertiser
Stübel Street Windhoek, NAMIBIA
Monday 16 December 1996

GAYS EYE EMBASSY
By Erhard Günzel

With President Sam Nujoma's stance on gays having made waves throughout
Southern Africa and beyond, the Namibian High Commission in South Africa 
is set to become the first foreign mission to feel the repercussions of the
remarks he made at a recent political meeting in
Gobabis.

Gay activists indicated at the weekend that pressure would be put on
Namibia's High Commission in Pretoria in reaction to the statements made 
by President Nujoma at the second Swapo Women's Congress on December 6.

The President bashed gays at the meeting, saying they had no place in
society. Gay radio programmes in South Africa have since last week
focused their attention on President Nujoma's statements. "In The Pink", 
an hour-long weekly programme hosted by a community radio station in Cape
Town last Thursday evening ran The Windhoek Advertiser's lead of the same
day "Nujoma blasts gays" as its main story.

One activist said it would be interesting to know what the city of San
Francisco's reaction would be.

"I am angry that President Nujoma is so careless. He of all people should
understand what discrimination is all about. When in 1980 he received an
award from the largely gay community of San Francisco, did he dismiss them
as  "only moffies?"

"He is setting a poor example", the activist told this newspaper.

The Californian metropolis, well-known for its largely gay municipality, 
was the first city in the world to present an award to President Nujoma in
his capacity of leader of Swapo during its armed struggle.

Another source speculated that aid from Scandinavian countries could be 
cut considerably, following an apparent precedent set by Sweden, after
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe lashed out against homosexuals on
several occasions last year. Scandinavian development aid is linked to the
human rights record in the recipient country.