Zambia pardons US gay couple

President Edgar Lungu yesterday pardoned two men who were jailed last year for having sex with each other. Their 15-year sentence triggered a diplomatic row, which ended in the recalling of the US ambassador in Zambia. BBC News reports that Japhet Chataba and Steven Samba were among nearly 3 000 prisoners pardoned. The High Court in Lusaka last year convicted the men for having sex 'against the order of nature' after a hotel worker had spotted them through an open window. US ambassador Daniel Foote was chastised for saying he was 'horrified' by the case. The government accused him of using US aid as a leverage.