Images posted on the Instagram account brenda_biyaa.
Brenda Biya, the daughter of Cameroon’s president Paul Biya, came out as lesbian last year despite the criminalisation of LGBTQ+ people in the central African nation.
by Beza Lealem
Brenda Biya, daughter of the Cameroonian president, has been involved in a legal dispute in Geneva, Switzerland, in relation to allegations of defamation and slander over social media by Cameroon-born musician Dencia Sonkey, according to a May report by Swissinfo, a Swiss Broadcasting Corporation service. A court has reportedly ruled against Biya, although details of the case cannot be independently verified by Fatteh.
Biya, an aspiring musician and controversial figure in her home country, made international headlines last year when she came out as lesbian. After sharing an image of her kissing another woman, Brazilian model Layyons Valença, Biya confirmed her sexual orientation an interview with French newspaper Le Parisien. Her father Paul Biya, Cameroon’s nonagenarian president who has been in power since 1982, and her mother first lady Chantal Biya, were said to be blindsided by the courageous move.
“I’m crazy about you & I want the world to know,” Brenda Biya wrote in the Instagram post with a picture of her embracing Valença last year. Despite protestations from her family, Biya did not delete the post at the time.
Same-sex acts are against the law in Cameroon and are punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine, according to UK-based human rights organisation Human Dignity Trust. A Cameroon government official told the BBC last year that the authorities had decided not to comment on the matter as it was a “family issue”.
UK-based Cameroonian LGBTQ+ activist Bandy Kiki commented on the news in a Facebook post at the time, “I love this for Cameroon’s First Daughter, Brenda Biya! However, it highlights a harsh reality: Anti-LGBT laws in Cameroon disproportionately target the poor. Wealth and connections create a shield for some, while others face severe consequences.”
Although her privileged status will have protected her from some of most serious forms anti-LGBTQ+ harassment in her home country, Biya nevertheless faced criticism from supporters of Cameroon’s local anti-gay law. Philippe Nsoue from the DDHP Movement reportedly filed a complaint against Biya to the country’s public prosecutor.
“Coming out is an opportunity to send a strong message,” Brenda Biya said in her interview last year, adding that she found Cameroon’s anti-gay law, which preceded her father’s presidency, “unfair and I hope that my story will change it.”