A Kenyan actress has received a major African film award for portraying a lesbian character in a movie banned within her country.
The Fespaco film festival in Burkina Faso honored Samantha Mugatsia with the best actress prize for her performance in Rafiki, a film prohibited in Kenya by the Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) last year over claims it "promotes lesbianism."
Homosexuality remains illegal in Kenya, a legacy of British colonial-era laws. While gay sex carries a maximum 14-year prison sentence, a High Court ruling on the ban is pending for May. The KFCB previously warned that possessing the film could constitute a legal violation.
Rafiki, meaning "friend" in Swahili, follows a romantic relationship between two young women navigating societal prejudice and political tensions. The story, adapted from Ugandan writer Monica Arac de Nyeko’s short story Jambula Tree, highlights systemic homophobia through its characters’ struggles.
Festival director Wanuri Kahiu celebrated the win on social media, stating: "The oldest African film festival acknowledged a queer character... So proud! Queerness cannot be silenced!"
The best actor award went to Marc Zinga for his role in The Mercy of the Jungle, while Rwandan filmmaker Joel Karekezi won the festival’s top prize, the golden stallion of Yennenga. Fespaco, marking its 50th anniversary this year, is Africa’s oldest and most influential film festival.
