Gay Sex Is No Longer Illegal In Barbados
Barbados’ top court has struck down colonial-era laws banning gay sex.
Barbados’ top court has struck down colonial-era laws banning gay sex.
The high court issued an oral ruling on Monday Dec. 12, finding the laws unconstitutional after two LGBTQ activists put forward a case.
The court will release a written judgement on the case in January.
Activists have said that although the ruling is rarely enforced, it marginalizes and discriminates LGBTQ people.
“The striking down of the laws reverses that and overnight tells the entire society that this is consensual contact and that what people choose to do with their private relationships is not the business of the law,” the chief executive of the London-based human rights organization Human Dignity Trust told AP.
The ruling comes after Antigua and Barbuda also found similar laws unconstitutional earlier in the year, followed by St Kitts and Nevis.
A similar case in St. Lucia is still pending.
