Human Rights Watch reports that Senegal has detained at least 320 people since February on charges of "acts against nature" following a toughened law that criminalises homosexuality. Among those arrested, at least 84 have been charged with "voluntary HIV transmission" based solely on their HIV status, according to HIV Justice Network, an organisation cited in the HRW report.
The crackdown includes forced HIV testing and barriers to legal representation, HRW states. The escalating enforcement has prompted LGBTQ+ people in Senegal to go into hiding.
Senegal's penal code criminalises same-sex relations. The recent intensification of arrests and the introduction of HIV transmission charges represent a marked shift in enforcement of existing law. The charges of "voluntary HIV transmission" applied to individuals based on HIV status alone reflect what rights groups characterise as discriminatory prosecutorial practice.
The arrests and conditions of detention, as documented by HRW and HIV Justice Network, point to what those organisations describe as systematic violations of detainees' rights. The forced testing of detainees and restrictions on their access to legal counsel compound concerns about due process.
Senegal has long had legal prohibitions against same-sex conduct. The current campaign appears to mark an acceleration and broadening of enforcement, with particular targeting of people with HIV diagnoses. The use of HIV status as the sole basis for "voluntary transmission" charges suggests authorities are treating HIV-positive individuals as inherently criminal regardless of actual transmission.
The scale of detentions, the involvement of forced medical testing, and the documented obstacles to legal representation indicate what HRW characterises as a coordinated enforcement effort. The result, according to available reporting, has been widespread fear within Senegal's LGBTQ+ community.