Mfundo Ngobese
was left with broken teeth, a broken leg and reliant on a urine bag after he
was targeted in a suspected homophobic attack.
He was on his
way home from a popular LGBT+ club, Albany 58, when he found himself surrounded
by three men.
Speaking
to Mamba
Online, Ngobese said: “I wasn’t mugged. I had a phone with me, and
they didn’t take it. They kept saying they hate gays. I believe I was punished
for my sexuality.”
The attack
took place near Durban City Hall in the early morning of 24 April.
Aside from the
physical pain, Ngobese suffers “traumatic attacks each and every night” and his
mental health has been affected greatly.
A professional
model, he fears the injuries to his face could impact his livelihood.
Ngobese said
he has tried opening a case with the police and has reported his injuries to them,
but nothing has been done.
He said: “As
the LGBTIQ community, we have suffered a lot, and when we open cases they are
not taken seriously because of who we are.”
South Africa
is one fo the few countries in Africa where same-sex marriage is legal. However,
it has no laws protecting the LGBT+ community from crimes motivated by
prejudice, leaving many like Ngobese vulnerable and with nowhere to turn.
South African
president Cyril Ramaphosa has condemned attacks against the LGBT+ community in
the past, and in 2020 passed a law which prohibited marriage officers from
refusing to marry same sex couples.
However, the
government is being urged to tackle violence and hate crime
According
to Mamba
Online, between 12 February and 30 December 2021, 24 LGBT+ people
were murdered because of their sexuality in the country.
The incident
comes after the murder of non-binary
lesbian Sheila Lumumba in Kenya.
SOURCE: PINK NEWS
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