Another win for gay rights as Botswana decriminalises gay sex

In what comes as a significant step towards the acceptance of LGBTQ+ community, the Botswana High Court decriminalised homosexuality on Tuesday, to the delight of countless people who were demanding that the law must be repealed. After years of oppression and weeks of struggle in the court, this day and the judgement will serve as a reminder that change is possible.

The colonial-era law forbade consenting sex between people belonging to the same sex and allowed the offenders to be jailed for up to seven years. After announcing the ruling in favour of the law to be dissolved, Justice Michael Leburu stated that discrimination has no place in the world. “All human beings are born equal. Homosexuality is another form of sexuality that has been suppressed for years,” he added. With 32 of the 54 nations in Africa condemning consensual same-sex relationships, this indeed is a tremendous win for the gay rights movement in the continent, especially with Pride Month being underway.

In first of the many changes favouring the LGBTQ+ community this year, Germany passed a law that came into effect on January 1, allowing intersex people to legally identify as “diverse” on official documents with the requirement of a doctor’s certificate. Though the declaration followed controversy, it was still a step forward to a more egalitarian society, towards the recognition of diversity.

In another step towards progress, Angola adopted its first new penal code on January 23 after its independence from Portugal in 1975, erasing the ban on gay sex, while also adding an article that prohibited discrimination against people on the basis of their sexual orientations. Thus, anyone refusing service or employment to individuals due to their sexuality will be liable to face up to two years in prison. With Botswana being added to the list, nine countries have decriminalise gay sex in the last five years.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) approved the removal of 'gender identity disorder' from its global diagnostic manual on May 24, 2019. The manual states that gender nonconformity will no longer be categorised as a mental disorder. It is now featured under a chapter on sexual health. With various governments previously using the manual as a basis for discriminatory policies, this new development is expected to help end discrimination faced by transgenders worldwide.

On the same day, Taiwan sanctioned a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry. A first in Asia, the country has taken a leap on the path to equality. The constitutional court, in 2017, found that the existing marriage act excluded same-sex couples, violating the constitution on discriminatory grounds. The parliament was given two years to amend the act. However, a referendum that was formed due to public opposition in 2018 resulted in rejection. Two alternative bills were introduced that allowed an unequal form of partnership that fell short of marriage, but were disapproved by Taiwan’s lawmakers who voted in favour of the bill that came to being in 2019.

The Pride Month—June—began with numerous events organised around the world, including parades, awareness campaigns, celebrations in honour of the Stonewall Riots of 1969, and festivals proudly exhibiting the vibrant colours of the rainbow. On the first day of the month, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift wrote a letter to Senator Lamar Alexander, urging that the Equality Act be passed. The Act – if passed – would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, public accommodations, public education, federal funding, credit, and the jury system in the US.

Though celebrations are aplenty, equal rights for the community have a long way to go. Over 70 countries of the world continue to criminalise gay sex – with Brunei among the lot. On April 3, the country adopted its new penal code which imposes death by stoning for extramarital sex and anal sex, and 40 lashes for lesbian sex. The laws attracted widespread condemnation.

It will be a long time before rights are recognised and accepted for every variation of the human colour. But until then, wave your pride flag high.

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