by Rachel Ogbu

Two men were sentenced to jail on Tuesday for homosexuality in Cameroon.

One man received a two year prison sentence while the court handed down a suspended one-year jail sentence to another underage youth.

One of the men, identified as Joseph Ombga, has already been detained for almost two years at Yaounde’s central prison and may be released from custody shortly if he pays a fine of 50,000 CFA francs and the same amount in legal expenses.

Ombga was arrested at his home in August 2011 and had been charged with sex with a minor after he was arrested in the company of another man to whom he wanted to sell a porn video, his lawyers say.

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Reports claim that there has been tension in Cameroun surrounding the treatment of gays, just recently Cameroonian rights groups pressed the government to carry out a proper investigation into the gruesome murder of prominent gay rights activist, Eric Lembembe, found dead in his home last week, and friends who found his body said he had been severely tortured.

Government spokesman and Communication Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary said in a TV broadcast:

“There is no conspiracy of state, nor any social plot in Cameroon, which is directed toward homosexuals. Many homosexuals live and move freely in Cameroon without being beaten or suffering punishment.”