Kenyan Cardinal hits back at Obama over homosexuality: Progressives ‘already ruined their society’
NAIROBI, Kenya, – Among the chorus of African leaders responding to Obama last week after the president urged Africans to accept homosexuality was a Kenyan Cardinal, who strongly urged Obama to “forget” his promotion of homosexual behavior.
“Those people who have already ruined their society...let them not become our teachers to tell us where to go,” said Cardinal John Njue, Archbishop of Nairobi and president of the Kenyan Episcopal Conference.
U.S. President Barack Obama and Senegalese President Macky Sall face off
“I think we need to act according to our own traditions and our faiths,” he added.
On June 28, Obama began a three-country tour of Africa by celebrating two U.S. Supreme Court decisions liberalizing homosexual “marriage,” and then offered a thinly-veiled criticism of his host nations.
“My basic view is that regardless of race, regardless of religion, regardless of gender, regardless of sexual orientation, when it comes to the law, people should be treated equally,” he said in Senegal. “And that's a principle that I think applies universally.”
Homosexuality is illegal in [38 African nations], including Senegal, which bans any “improper or unnatural act with a person of the same sex.”
The remarks prompted a quick response from Senegal President Macky Sall, who insisted his nation “is not homophobic” and is “very tolerant.”
The U.S. president was also rebuked by Kenya’s Deputy President, William Ruto. Speaking at a Catholic Church, Ruto said, “Those who believe in other things, that is their business…We believe in God.”
“This nation, the nation of Kenya [is] sovereign and God-fearing,” he added.
“America has made tremendous contribution to Kenya’s well-being and we are very grateful and as a government we are ready to receive any help from America that will improve the lives of our people,” Ruto stated. “But for these other things we hear, it is none of our business as it goes against our customs and traditions.”
The cultural clash on homosexuality has often been exacerbated because Western nations frequently threaten African nations with a loss of foreign aid over the issue.
