Five Egyptian Gays Sentenced
Associated Press, March 11, 2002
CAIRO, Egypt (AP)—Five Egyptian men were sentenced
Monday to three years in prison with hard labor for engaging in gay sex,
judicial officials said.
The men had pleaded guilty to debauchery and running a house for gay sex
parties. The Nile Delta Misdemeanor Court handed down their sentence, which
also includes three years of probation.
Islam prohibits homosexuality and, although not explicitly referred to in
the Egyptian penal code, a wide range of laws covering obscenity, prostitution
and debauchery are applied to homosexuals.
Gay cases have shocked conservative Egypt, while prompting international
attention and support from gay rights activists.
Last year in Cairo, 52 men were tried by an Emergency State Security Court
on charges of immoral behavior and contempt of religion after police raided a
Nile boat restaurant and accused them of taking part in a gay sex party.
Twenty-three were convicted and sentenced to up to five years in prison. The
rest were acquitted.
The identities of those convicted Monday were not revealed.
Officials said the group included two government employees who used to
invite gay youth to their house in Damanhur, about 90 miles northwest of
Cairo, for sex parties.
[Home] [News] [Egypt]
