In Uganda, Cleopatra Kambugu becomes the first transgender woman recognized by the state

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Cleopatra Kambugu in the documentary “The Pearl o Africa”, by Jonny von Wallström.

Cleopatra Kambugu is now a full citizen. At 35, she was finally recognized as a woman on official documents. A first for a transgender in Uganda. And “The accomplishment of a long journey of transition initiated more than ten years ago”, rejoices the activist.

In a country that is very conservative on moral issues, the story of Cleopatra Kambugu stands out. “In recent days, I have received many calls from people who want to follow his path and also start the procedures to obtain their papers”, observes Frank Mugisha, the director of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), an NGO defending the rights of sexual minorities, who hopes that this first victory will allow for a new discussion with the authorities. ” Since the beginning of the year, he explains, We recorded six arrests of transgender people for identity theft because their dress style did not match their official gender. “

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Without papers recognizing their transition, Ugandan transgender people are often denied access to many services. “Travel, vote, open a bank account … All the procedures that require an identity verification become complicated”, regrets Frank Mugisha. Not to mention the thousand and one vexations of everyday life that target people associated with the LGBT community.

A list of 200 homosexuals

Because she grew up in a privileged area of ​​Kampala, Cleopatra Kambugu believes that she was relatively spared from transphobia. “In private schools, violence and remarks were limited, she recalls. But I could never see a single person around me who looked like me. “ At the end of her schooling, she quickly became involved in transgender militant movements, while carrying out biology studies and research work on food insecurity.

But discrimination against the LGBT community increased in Uganda in 2013, when the so-called “anti-homosexuality” bill was discussed in Parliament. The text criminalizes homosexual relations, condemning them to the death penalty in a first version, before being revised to a life sentence. In the aftermath of the official adoption of the law, the tabloid Red pepper publishes list revealing the names of 200 Ugandan homosexuals. Among them, Cleopatra Kambugu.

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“I never really hid my transidentity, but it was now in all the newspapers. I couldn’t go back to university or to work and I was afraid of putting my family in danger ”remembers the activist, who decides to accept a job in Nairobi for a foundation for the defense of sexual minorities in East Africa. “We funded Ugandan lawyers who campaigned against the anti-homosexuality law and, in August 2014, the Constitutional Court finally rejected the text”, she congratulates herself.

“My story is not that of a victim”

Encouraged by this decision, Cleopatra Kambugu agrees to be filmed for what will become the documentary The Pearl of Africa, directed by Jonny von Wallström. The activist reveals her relationship with her partner and the conditions of her operation in Thailand. “Stories about transgender people are often incomplete and victimizing, she explains. And that’s not the way I see myself. My story is not that of a victim, on the contrary. ” It was not until 2018 that she decided to return to Kampala to be closer to her family, while continuing to work for the Nairobi-based foundation.

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LGBT community advocates widely welcomed the official recognition of Cleopatra Kambugu’s femininity, after tensions over the text on sexual offenses adopted by Parliament in May. The bill, which President Yoweri Museveni has so far refused to sign, once again criminalizes same-sex relationships and plans to create a sex offender file in which those convicted of homosexuality would be included.

“With this first step forward, I hope that we will now be able to enshrine the right to transition in law”, begins to dream Franck Mugisha, stressing the need to initiate a new discussion with the authorities. But the fight is still far from won. “As long as obtaining a simple identity card is in the news, there will still be a long way to go”, says Cleopatra Kambugu.

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