Obama tells Africans that gays deserve equality

Obama's Young African Leaders Forum in Washington touched on press freedom. (America.gov)

DAKAR (AFP) - US President Barack Obama told Africans Thursday that gays deserve equality under the law, as Nelson Mandela's plight and a global spying drama threatened to detract from his first tour of the continent.

Obama struggled to keep the focus on his goals for the week-long trip, also scheduled to stop in South Africa and Tanzania, as he sought to fulfil neglected African expectations for America's first black president.

He stepped on delicate ground when asked by reporters to comment on a landmark US Supreme Court ruling on same sex marriage while visiting a country where homosexuality is a crime and rights groups decry gay harassment.

Obama said he understood that different religions and cultures adhered to different beliefs and traditions, but that the simple principle of equality should be the guide for states and governments.

"I want the African people to just hear what I believe," Obama said.

"My basic view is that regardless of race, regardless of religion, regardless of gender, regardless of sexual orientation, when it comes to how the law treats you... people should be treated equally."

Senegalese President Macky Sall replied that though Senegal was a "very tolerant country which does not discriminate in terms of inalienable rights of the human being", it was not ready yet to decriminalise homosexuality.

"But of course this does not mean that we are all homophobic."

Obama said he still planned to head for South Africa on Friday, despite speculation that with anti-apartheid icon Mandela apparently close to death, his plans could be thrown into disarray.

The president said he was drawn into political activism by Mandela as a student, and had been inspired by his example in embracing his long-time captors in a spirit of national unity.

"I think he is a hero for the world and if and when he passes from this place, one thing I think we will all know is, his legacy is one that will linger on through the ages," Obama said.

Obama also had to parry questions about the chase for fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, who is holed up in limbo in Moscow airport, but he appeared keen to bring the focus back to Africa.

"In the meantime, we've got other business to do. For example, we're here in Africa and I don't want people to forget why we're here," Obama said.

"The fact of the matter is that Africa oftentimes is not focused on by our press and our leadership back home unless there's a crisis."

Obama's tour is meant to promote democratisation and trade and business links on a continent he said is poised to break out economically, and which has attracted lavish attention from US rivals like China.

"I see this as a moment of great progress and great promise for the continent," Obama said.

"It's true that Africa faces great challenges, and meeting these challenges together is a focus of my trip. But all too often the world overlooks the amazing progress that Africa is making."

Washington is keen to highlight Muslim-majority Senegal as an example of democracy and good governance in a corner of Africa plagued by instability and the threat of Islamic extremism in neighbouring Mali.

"Senegal is one of the most stable democracies in Africa and one of the strongest partners that we have in the region," Obama said as he stood side-by-side with Sall.

"It is moving in the right direction, with reforms to deepen democratic institutions. I believe Senegal can be a great example."

Later, in a moment of potent symbolism, Obama took a ferry to Goree Island off the Senegal coast, a memorial to the hundreds of thousands of Africans claimed by the slave trade.

Obama, the son of a Kenyan father, and his wife Michelle, the descendent of slaves, acknowledged a dark period of American and African history which resonates today.

Obama claims a spiritual connection to Africa, but a crush of international crises in his first term thwarted his hopes to travel extensively on the continent. He did manage a short trip to Ghana in 2009.

But there was still disappointment in Africa, where Obama's 2008 election caused euphoria and expectations that he would put US policy towards the continent at the top of his agenda.

Originating at cpj.org