Botswana on Tuesday decriminalized homosexuality in the country. In a landmark judgment for the African continent’s LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) community, the High Court scrapped a colonial-era law that punished gay sex. Three judges came to the decision unanimously, reported Reuters.
Under the country’s 1965 penal code, homosexuality is punishable by a jail term of up to seven years. Justice Michael Elburu declared that the current laws oppressed a minority of the population and were discriminatory, unconstitutional and against the public interest. He ordered the amendment of the laws.
“Human dignity is harmed when minority groups are marginalized,” Justice Leburu said as he delivered the judgment. “Sexual orientation is not a fashion statement. It is an important attribute of one’s personality.”
The gay rights campaigners welcomed the decision and described it as a significant step for gay rights on the African continent.
International Rights group Amnesty International hailed the decision saying that the ruling marks an exciting new era of acceptance. It added that the ruling should inspire other African countries to follow suit.
“With this ruling, Botswana has said ‘no’ to intolerance and hate and ‘yes’ to hope and equality for all people,” Muleya Mwananyanda, Amnesty International’s deputy director for Southern Africa, said in a statement.
The ruling comes less than a month after Kenya’s High Court upheld its laws criminalizing homosexuality. Same-sex relationships are illegal in more than half of the countries in Africa including Sudan, parts of Somalia and Nigeria, where homosexuality is a crime punishable by death. Currently, 28 out of 49 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, have laws penalizing same-sex relationships.
However, there are a few countries whose courts have decriminalized homosexuality. Mozambique removed anti-gay laws in 2015, while São Tomé, Cape Verde Angola and Seychelles have also abolished laws criminalizing gay relationships.
