National communion has given way to a homophobic wave. Less than a week after being awarded the Goncourt prize for
The most secret memory of men on
Wednesday,
published by Philippe Rey, the Senegalese writer Mohamed Mbougar Sarr is the subject of a smear campaign in his country of birth where he is accused of having defended homosexuality. Acclaimed initially in Senegal for his literary triumph, the child of the country has for a few days aroused less laudatory, even frankly hostile comments from some of his compatriots, on social networks, where praise has been received. gave way to a wave of pinned messages of the phrase
“Congratulations withdrawn”
.
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Most secret memory of men
An about-face put on the account of the previous book by Mohamed Mbougar Sarr,
De pure hommes
(Philippe Rey, 2018). Sometimes confused by Internet users with the book awarded this year by the Goncourt Academy, the book tells the story of a professor of letters confronted with the ordinary violence of homophobia, rampant in Senegal. An interview given by the writer to the newspaper
Le Monde
, in 2018, is also under fire from critics.
"A good homosexual in Senegal is either a homosexual who is in hiding, or a public entertainer, or a dead homosexual
," the author declared there, before being sorry for the political abandonment vis-à-vis the LGBT communities of the country , for more than ten years.
Unfortunately, the religious power has a very strong hold on the spirits.
Even politicians and academics must above all pledge allegiance to religious power. ”
The taboo of homosexuality in Senegal
A position that caused a reaction in Senegal, where important Muslim brotherhoods flourish.
"Just like Diary Sow that the French media seek to promote at all costs, this gentleman is a perfect vector for destroying our cultures and beliefs",
deplores one Internet user.
"I withdraw my congratulations altogether and I regret it very much,"
said another on Twitter. Influential in Senegal, where it was able to censor several popular series, the Islamic NGO Jamra has more widely expressed its concern about the awarding of the Goncourt Prize to Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, mentioning on Facebook, a
"Western hyper-media coverage. (suspicious) "
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Designated by the derogatory Wolof term of
góor-jigéen
(for
“man-woman”
), homosexuals are strongly repressed in Senegal, where any
“immodest or unnatural”
act
between people of the same sex is prohibited by the Penal Code.
“Homosexuals are considered as animals who do not have the right to live, who do not have the right to be in Senegalese society. These are people to be slaughtered ”
, had testified last May for Franceinfo, Djamil Bangoura, the president of the association Prudence, dedicated to the defense of the rights of LGBT people. “
In Senegal, homosexuality is not a debate. People are against it and that's it,
added for
Têtu
, about the Mohamed Mbougar Sarr affair, a persecuted homosexual who eventually left Senegal.
The simple fact of broaching the subject is shocking, we see it through this controversy
”.
“I don't even know if I have something to say about it. I am a writer and I try to do my job as a writer
, Mohamed Mbougar Sarr reacted on Thursday in an interview with ITV Senegal.
Referring to
"misunderstandings, misunderstandings
", the writer affirmed to respect all criticisms, as long as she
"makes the effort to be as fair as possible"
.
“I'm just asking that we read what I wrote.
And that we can read, too.
Knowing how to read is also something that can be learned. ”
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