It was not immediately clear if the Attorney General would appeal the decision.
Article author:
Associated Press
Danikakoto
Puerto Rico, San Juan — Caribbean Courts Gay on Tuesday Antigua and Barbuda's law criminalizing sex is unconstitutional.
The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court has found that "the choice of an intimate partner is a private and personal choice." The
ruling also stated that the 1995 Sexual Crimes Act of Futajima violated the right to "freedom, protection of law, freedom of speech, protection of personal privacy, and protection from gender discrimination. I will do it. "
The ruling came after a gay man working at the Ministry of Health in Antigua and a local group called Women Against Rape Inc. called for the law to be considered unconstitutional.
A rarely used law partially states that two agreed adults convicted of having anal sex face 15 years in prison. If convicted of serious obscenity, they will face five years in prison.
Homosexual men are persecuted, a common complaint in the mostly conservative Caribbean region, where many homosexuals are afraid of their lives. I testified that I had been assaulted. The man also said the patient refused treatment from him because of his sexual orientation, according to the judgment.
Meanwhile, anti-rape groups are receiving hostile treatment by health care providers as concerns about confidentiality breaches prevent people in the LGBTQ community from seeking AIDS testing and treatment. Said.
Such laws were previously common in former British colonies throughout the Caribbean, but have been challenged in recent years. Belize and Trinidad&Tobago courts have found such a law unconstitutional, but other proceedings in the region are pending.
The East Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality welcomed Tuesday's results. The result came in a proceeding that began in 2020 to challenge what is known as the "invasive and unconstitutional remnants of colonial law."
Group Managing Director Kenita Placed said such a law "legalizes hate speech, discrimination, violence, and tears over the structure of our society." The
group states that same-sex consensual intimacy is still criminalized in seven Caribbean countries, and although penalties are rarely imposed, penalties begin at 10 years. He added that he would be sentenced to life imprisonment.
It is said that constitutional objections are pending in Barbados, Saint Lucia and Saint Kitts and Nevis.
In the judgment, Judge Marissa Robertson of the High Court said: As concepts, attitudes, and understandings of human rights and dignity evolve over time, the very rights that documents endorse and protect may evolve.
It was not immediately clear if the Attorney General of Antigua and Barbuda was going to appeal the decision. She couldn't immediately ask government officials for comment.
From the newsroom to the noon inbox, Toronto Sun's latest headlines, stories, opinions and photos. By clicking the
Thank you for registering.
A welcome email has been sent. If you don't see it, check your junk folder.
Your Midday Sun's next issue will arrive in your inbox shortly.
