Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday condemned Senegal’s harsh crackdown on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, warning that mass arrests, forced HIV testing and punitive laws are violating basic rights and fueling fear and stigma. The group urged the government to bring to a halt these abuses immediately, especially as Senegal prepares to host the Youth Olympic Games later this month.

HRW researcher Larrissa Kojoué commented on the discrimination faced by local LGBT people, stating:

LGBT people are being forced to curb their normal activities and to keep from exercising their rights for fear of arrest and increasing stigma. Senegal’s government should call a halt to this crackdown, which threatens everyone’s rights.

In March 2026, Senegal’s Parliament amended Article 319 of the Penal Code, doubling prison terms for consensual same-sex conduct to up to 10 years and criminalizing promotion or support of LGBT people and organizations. The country has also increased the maximum fine to 10 million CFA francs ($18,000). The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) have condemned the legislation’s vague wording which risks criminalizing legitimate human rights initiatives. It noted that the phrase “practices akin to bestiality or necrophilia” illustrated the “influence of conservative groups with a conspiracy-theory-based rhetoric.”

The HIV Justice Network has documented more than 355 arrests made under allegations of  “acts against nature,” at least 97 of which involved charges of “voluntary HIV transmission,” charges the rights group says were brought solely on the basis of the individuals’ HIV status. The detainees have also been subjected to mandatory HIV testing, raising serious privacy and health concerns.

According to a 2010 report by HRW, the organization pointed out that in December 2008, nine men who were attending a training course on preventing HIV were arrested by police before being subjected to torture. Amnesty International later raised concerns that the men’s confessions were extracted under torture and admitted as evidence during their trial, describing them as prisoners of conscience.

More than 30 of Africa’s 54 countries criminalize same-sex relations. Senegal’s penalties now align with harsh laws in Kenya, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania with other countries like Uganda and Mauritania imposing harsher punishments including the death penalty. This legislation marks a departure from rulings made by courts in Botswana, Kenya and Zambia over a decade ago that recognized fundamental human rights of the LGBT community.

HRW has raised questions about Senegal’s readiness to host the Youth Olympic Games from October 31 to November 13, the first Olympic event on African soil, noting that the Olympic Charter requires for respect for human dignity and non-discrimination.