SENEGAL: THE HEAD OF THE LGBTQ NGO PRUDENCE WAS ATTACKED AGAIN

Djamil Bangoura, the head of the Senegalese LGBTI NGO Prudence +, founded in 2003, was beaten on February 10th in Pikine. This latest attack required emergency surgery. Gradually recovering from his injuries, he told 76crimes about his attack, still in shock.

1. Can you tell us about the circumstances of your attack?

“On February 10th, I was riding a bus in the late afternoon, between 4:00 PM and 5:00 PM, in the area between Keur Massar and Malika Village, on the outskirts of Dakar, to get home. While the bus was stopping, a group of three people boarded, intending to have a serious fight with me. Very quickly, homophobic insults were hurled at me and I was called all sorts of names, and then it was just a frenzy of blows, even though I tried to defend myself. I was beaten with a stick after one of my attackers shouted, “he’s the biggest of the goordjiguen (a term used to refer to gays in Senegal and which can have a very pejorative connotation – literally it means man-woman). During this fight, the women nearby were screaming, while a fairly old man tried to intervene without success. I tried to resist and return blows, but three against one, they were far more numerous than me. Finally, it was a violent kick to the stomach, at the level of the sternum, which almost made me lose consciousness. However, even on the ground, I remember the blows continued to rain down, but I couldn’t do anything.”

2. What were the consequences of this attack?

“They were mainly medical, because now I’m reluctant to go to the police station when I’m attacked. A paramedic ambulance arrived on the scene once the attackers had left. I received some treatment for superficial skin lesions and abrasions. However, the next day, my abdominal pain was intense and required observation at the Ouakam military hospital. It was after an X-ray that it was decided to have emergency surgery. Following the surgery, it was decided to keep me under medical supervision for a total of two days.”

3. Do you wish to pursue legal action by filing a complaint?

“The incident occurred barely 500 meters from an understaffed police station in the late afternoon, and although I recognize one of my attackers, I don’t want to. He often hangs around the neighborhood where I live and insults me almost daily when he sees me. In fact, he was probably behind the surveillance that led to the ambush I was subjected to. He may know my habits. In any case, it is certain that I was not targeted by chance, and this is not the first time that I have been physically attacked. Since 2006/2007, I have been attacked no less than seven times, and to date, none of my complaints have been successful. I still remember the trauma of my first attack, when some youths from my neighborhood came and poured cans of gasoline to set fire to my old home. At the time, the neighborhood leader and the imam who had ordered this assassination attempt weren’t even bothered by the authorities.

4. How do you see your future?

“For now, I need rest to complete my recovery. And for that, I’ll have to get away from my usual haunts a bit, so that I don’t run into the same gang that got me hospitalized.”