Court orders Botswana to list gay group
Sharon Papo (right) and her partner Amber Weiss display their wedding rings after exchanging wedding vows at City Hall on the first full day of legal same-sex marriages in San Francisco, California June 17, 2008. A Botswana High Court ordered the government on November 14, 2014 to register and recognise the country’s first gay and lesbian lobby group. FILE PHOTO
What you need to know:
- He said government’s refusal to register the group had “violated the applicants’ rights to freedom of expression, freedom of association and freedom of assembly” under the country’s constitution.
GABORONE
A Botswana High Court ordered the government Friday to register and recognise the country’s first gay and lesbian lobby group, in a case testing the nation’s strict anti-homosexuality laws.
A group of activists approached the court to rule on the matter after the Home Affairs ministry rejected an application to register the Lesbians, Gays, and Bisexuals of Botswana.
In his verdict, judge Terrence Rannowane said “refusal to register the group was not reasonably justifiable under the constitution”.
“It is also not a crime to be a homosexual,” declared the judge.
He said government’s refusal to register the group had “violated the applicants’ rights to freedom of expression, freedom of association and freedom of assembly” under the country’s constitution.
Botswana is touted as one of Africa’s most democratic nations, yet homosexuality is outlawed under the penal code of 1965, and punishable by prison term of up to seven years.
The gay group’s objective is to campaign for equal rights and decriminalisation of same sex relations.
Rannowane said lobbying for legislative reforms was not a crime.
The gay group’s coordinator Caine Youngman praised the court’s decision.
“It has been a long and arduous journey towards recognition and we are relieved that the court has protected our rights.”
