Biden administration calls out Burundi’s president for saying gay people should be stoned to death

The United States expressed concern about comments made by Burundi President Evariste Ndayishimiye last week, where he called homosexuality a “curse” on a country and said that he wanted to put gay people in a stadium and stone them to death.

“The United States is deeply troubled by President Ndayishimiye’s remarks targeting certain vulnerable and marginalized Burundians,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.

Related:

World Bank halts all loans to Uganda due to its vicious anti-LGBTQ+ law

Uganda’s foreign minister accused the Bank of unfairly “picking on” the country.

“We call on all of Burundi’s leaders to respect the inherent dignity and inalienable rights, including equal access to justice, of every member of Burundian society.”

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Ndayishimiye was speaking to reporters last week when he denounced homosexuality.

“If you want to attract a curse to the country, accept homosexuality,” he said.

“I think that if we find these kinds of people in Burundi, it is better to take them to a stadium and stone them, and that cannot be a sin,” Ndayishimiye said. “That’s what they deserve.”

He also said that Western countries were forcing LGBTQ+ equality on Africa in exchange for aid. “Let them keep it,” he said.

This is not the first time that the Biden administration has called out increasing homophobia in East Africa. Last year, after Uganda passed its “Kill the Gays” bill, Biden condemned it as a violation of human rights.

“The enactment of Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act is a tragic violation of universal human rights — one that is not worthy of the Ugandan people, and one that jeopardizes the prospects of critical economic growth for the entire country,” he said in a statement.

Several weeks ago, Biden kicked Uganda out of a beneficial trade deal, citing its “gross violations of internationally recognized human rights.”