国外媒体:塞内加尔宣判九名同性恋者无罪（在线收听）

今年一月，地方法院以"违反自然性行为"等罪名重判九名男子八年入狱刑期，这九名男子大多是塞内加尔国内同性恋者健康与权益活动团体的成员，其中包括一位较为知名的活动人士。这一判决受到联合国以及一些国际人权组织的关注和批评，国际社会谴责这一判决是侵犯同性恋者基本人权的又一案例，也将严重阻碍塞内加尔国内艾滋病预防工作的实施。

In a packed courtroom in downtown Dakar, the appeals court pardoned all nine defendants and overturned charges of committing unnatural acts and criminal conspiracy.

Biram Sassoum Sy, who led the defense team, says the men are completely cleared of any crime or wrongdoing and the case will not be pursued. When they were apprehended, arrested and sentenced, he says the law was broken at every step. The trial, he says, is invalid and they are free to go.

Most of the defendants worked for HIV/AIDS programs targeting men who have sex with men. They were arrested at the home of a prominent gay activist in December.

Sy says the police went to the defendant's house after neighbors tipped them off. The attorney says police arrested the men without a warrant and extorted a confession through bullying and harassment.

Senegalese law prohibits homosexual activity but requires that the suspect be caught in the act. A search warrant is also necessary if police are to enter a private home. Sy says the original judgment was hasty and emotional, and correct legal procedure was not followed.

The maximum penalty for homosexual activity is five years. The sentencing judge in this case added another three years for criminal conspiracy. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission in Cape Town said no other African country has handed down such a severe sentence.

Despite the positive outcome of the appeal, AIDS activists in Senegal are concerned about the effect the trial will have on HIV programs serving men who have sex with men.

Daouda Diouf, director of community-led HIV programs at Enda Tiers Monde - an international non-profit organization based in Dakar, says AIDS work with homosexuals will take time to return to the level it was at before. He says the trial has created a lot of fear and the people working with this community feel threatened. It will take time to build up trust again, he says, so they can conduct HIV/AIDS activities without fearing for their safety.

Diouf says that if HIV is not controlled in vulnerable groups like the homosexual community, it will be impossible to manage the HIV epidemic in Senegal. These men, he says, are key players in the country's fight against HIV.