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Peter Tatchell has taken up the case of pair charged with 'unnatural practises between males'
Malawi
Trial of Malawian gay marriage couple begins next week
The trial of two gay men who were arrested at their home in Malawi after a symbolic marriage ceremony and then charged with committing "unnatural practises between males", is scheduled to begin on January 15.
The Guardian's Africa correspondent reported yesterday that, for their own protection, Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza had been denied bail by magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwausiwa, who said: "The public out there is angry with them."
Chimbalanga, 20, and Monjeza, 26, were the first same-sex couple to commit to marriage in the southern African state, where homosexuality is illegal and carries a maximum 14-year jail sentence. They were arrested two days after the ceremony and appeared in court in the city of Blantyre to answer three charges of unnatural practises between males and gross indecency.
Gay rights activist Peter Tatchell, who is in contact with campaigners in Malawi, said that the pair will challenge the prosecution on the grounds that it is illegal under the equal rights and non-discrimination clauses of the Malawian constitution.
"They face a maximum of 14 years jail, under Malawi's anti-gay law, section 153 of the penal code, which was originally imposed on the country by the British colonisers during the nineteenth century," Tatchell said.
"Tiwonge and Steven are quite fearful and dejected. They were jeered in court and have been disowned by their families. Conditions in Chichiri jail are appalling. They say they have been beaten in prison and they are now threatened with forced intimate medical examinations to determine whether they have had sex.
"Visitors have taken them food and clothing and given them some money. They encouraged them to stand firm and reassured them that they have support inside Malawi and worldwide. This has lifted their spirits."
