Eighteen men have been imprisoned following their arrest for alleged sodomy in northern Nigeria, the state-owned news agency reports. In the northeastern state of Bauchi, which is governed by the Islamic Sharia law, the punishment for sodomy is death by stoning.
The men were said to have been visiting Bauchi town from neighboring states to celebrate a "gay wedding". More than a dozen Nigerian Muslims have been sentenced to death by stoning and for sexual offenses ranging from adultery and homosexuality.
But none of these death sentences have actually been carried out as they were either thrown out on appeal or commuted to prison terms as a result of pressure from human rights groups.
Others have been sentenced to flogging by horsewhip for drinking. But there have been two amputations in north-western Zamfara State which pioneered the introduction of the Islamic legal system in the country.
Nigeria, like many African countries, is a conservative society where homosexuality is considered a taboo. The Nigerian parliament has been trying to pass a controversial law introduced by former President Olusegun Obasanjo banning gay rights organisations.
In April, a woman reportedly fled Nigeria after being accused of organizing a polygamous lesbian wedding. She later denied the reports.
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