Bridging Womens Rights And Human Rights A Case Study Of Five Ethiopian Lesbians

In Ethiopian society same-sex sexuality is seen as a disease or as a deviant behaviorrnwhich exists irrespective of the natural. This research is intended to answer four basicrnquestions: How do Ethiopian women who engage in same-sex sexual activity perceivernthemselves and their sexuality? Do they perceive any relation between gender equalityrnand same-sex sexuality despite state-sanctioned homophobia? What social,rnpsychological, and physical threats, if any, do Ethiopian lesbians face? How do they copernwith state-sanctioned homophobia?rnIn order to answer the above research questions an online semi-structured and selfadministeredrnquestionnaire, relying mainly on open-ended questions, was utilized tornbetter understand the lives of Ethiopian lesbians and to ensure privacy, confidentialityrnand anonymity. By employing purposive sampling, the present study recruited Ethiopianrnlesbians who are members of the Queer Abesha Women’s Yahoo Group listserv.rnThree major themes emerged from an analysis of the content of five Ethiopian lesbianrncases. The first theme reflected the negative impact of Ethiopian laws on the personalrnlives of Ethiopian lesbians. The second theme revealed sexual agency among the women despite political, cultural and religious repression. The third theme reflected therndynamic nature of Ethiopian women’s sexuality as well as their sexual fluidity.rnDespite the challenges Ethiopian lesbians experience from fundamentalist religiousrnbeliefs, repressive laws and societal norms, all five women perceive themselves asrnhealthy sexual human beings

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