Undule now ‘man of God’: Insists gays need protection in Malawi

Former fierce human rights activist Undule Mwakasungula, who went into oblivion after making a bold decision to serve God, has maintained his earlier position on same sex marriages, saying the LGBTI (Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex) community needs protection and support.

Mwakasungula disclosed this in a local newspaper interview after being asked his stand on lesbians and gays considering that he is now a servant of God.

“My position has not changed and I remain strongly convinced that LGBTI (Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex) community needs protection and support. Nobody will shift me on this,” Mwakasungura, former executive director of Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) told The Nation.

“Once Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu said it is not acceptable for us to discriminate against our brothers and sisters on the basis of sexual orientation just as it was not acceptable for discrimination to exist on the basis of skin colour during Apartheid years in South Africa. This issue needs to be debated without emotions or politics,” he added.

Mwakasangura said: “If being LGBT is demonic, then let us cast those demons out of them to set them free from the bondage they are in.”

While supporting the recently signed Marriage, Divorce and Family Relations bill, Mwakasungula concurred with some commentators that some provisions are not in line with human rights standards.

“It is true that some provisions are not in line with human rights standards. I might speculate that the motive or intention of including the definition of sex and defining it in such manner was not good.

“True, the definition leaves a lot to be desired and it really does not recognize that as a society which is democratic, progressing in that regard and 20 years old in transition, we need to consider other orientations to avoid bringing issues of discrimination on our own citizens,” he said.

Mwakasungula, who says that is leading an enjoyable spiritual life, was one of the vocal human rights activists in the country.

He rose to stardom during the late Bingu wa Mutharika regime which was characterized by undemocratic tendencies in the middle of his second term.