Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals of Botswana (or LEGABIBO) chief executive Thato Moruti said the development will add impetus to advocacy on human rights issues. Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals of Botswana chief executive officer, Thato Moruti, speaks at the High Court in Gaborone, Botswana. It is a victory that will live with us as a nation for many, many years to come,” said the lawyer. It did not have its impact in Botswana but all over the world because the issues before the court were not just local but universal issues. It is a decision of the highest court that will reverberate around the world. “It is indeed a great victory for the nation, for the lovers of human rights, for my clients.
Representing the LGBTQ community, lawyer Tshiamo Rantao said the matter has been finally laid to rest. The government wanted the 2019 court ruling overturned, arguing that the majority of people in the country did not agree with it.
Kirby s&m code#
He said the offending sections of the penal code have outlived their usefulness and only serve to encourage law enforcement agents to become keyhole peepers and intrude into the private space of citizens. The five judges on Botswana’s Court of Appeal were unanimous in upholding the June 2019 landmark decision which recognized homosexuality.Ĭourt of Appeal president Ian Kirby said criminalizing same-sex activities violates the constitutional right of lesbians, gays, bisexual and transgender persons. Human rights groups have welcomed the decision, saying it opens the door to challenge what they say are other discriminatory laws in Botswana. Botswana's government has lost a bid to overturn a 2019 court ruling that decriminalized same-sex relations.