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It will have been enough for nothing to set ablaze, on social networks, defenders or detractors of LGBTI + rights, Senegalese, French, football fans or polemics: the absence of the player from Paris-Saint-Germain (PSG) Idrissa Gueye, Saturday May 14 against Montpellier (4-0). As the International Day Against Homophobia approaches, it is customary for Ligue 1 players to wear a flocked jersey in the colors of the rainbow flag.
An operation entitled “Gays or heterosexuals, we all wear the same jersey” and organized by the Professional Football League (LFP) for four years. In 2021, Idrissa Gueye had already been called pale by advancing gastroenteritis. This year, the Senegalese international did not offer an explanation. Only PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino spoke of ” personal reasons “, and recognized that his player” was not injured “.
“Symbolically, it is a sad message, reacts Sébastien Tüller, LGBTI+ manager for Amnesty International France. Idrissa Gueye is an extremely popular player. If he had worn this jersey, he could have had a huge impact on the world of football and on Senegalese society, on young people in particular.. »
The activist judges ” regrettable that Idrissa Gueye did not join the LFP initiative, but refrained from calling for individual sanctions. ” His case is exploited on social networks by the Senegalese political class, but it is not only about him. The fight for the human rights of LGBTI+ people is above all the responsibility of States. »
The whole country behind Idrissa Gueye
Because the whole of Senegal has united behind Idrissa Gueye, erected as a hero of national sovereignty and traditional values. Starting with President Macky Sall himself, who cracked a pithy tweet : “ I support Idrissa Gana Gueye. His religious convictions must be respected. Rarely has a post from the Head of State aroused so much support. Immediately shared tens of thousands of times by his compatriots, on Twitter and Facebook, he was unanimous among Senegalese Internet users, who welcomed this support from the highest authority in the country.
Macky Sall’s position comes in a tense political context in Senegal. With the approach of the legislative elections in July, no force would take the risk of standing out on such a flammable subject of society. In January, deputies prepared a bill aimed at toughening the sanctions against homosexuality, which was finally judged “inadmissible” by the National Assembly.
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