Barbados court strikes down laws criminalising gay sex; 3rd Caribbean nation to do so this year

The Barbados High Court on Tuesday struck down colonial-era laws that criminalise gay sex. The court ruled that the criminalisation of gay sex is unconstitutional.With this ruling, Barbados becomes the third country in the Caribbean after Saint Kitts and Nevis and Antigua to overthrow such legislation this year, a report by news agency Reuters said.

The High Court's decision, which was announced by Barbados Attorney General Dale Marshall on Tuesday, was welcomed by activists and non-profit organisations who have campaigned against laws that banned gay and lesbian sex for long.

Attorney General Marshall said in a statement that Justice Michelle Weekes issued the ruling on Monday, concluding that Sections 9 and 12 of the Sexual Offences act were unconstitutional.

"In short, (the ruling means) we can no longer prosecute persons under these two sections," Marshall said and added charges for offences relating to consensual gay sex could not now be maintained.

The High Court has only issued an oral ruling, for now, saying it found such laws unconstitutional. The court won't release a written judgement detailing its reasons until late January.

Reacting to the court's decision, Michael Rapley, a member of an NGO Equals, told Reuters "We are very pleased with the result of this case, which is a result of years of advocacy efforts by the community organizations as well as the litigants." Rapley added the decision was a step in the right direction for the protection of the LGBTQ+ people in Barbados.

Téa Braun, the chief executive of Human Dignity Trust- a London-based human rights organisation- also reacted to the ruling and told the Associated Press, ''It’s gone from a certain ripple effect to a tidal wave in the Caribbean, which is what everyone involved set out to achieve.''

Braun said while the laws (that criminalise gay sex) were rarely invoked, they signalled that LGBTQ people were criminal and lesser citizens.

“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,” Braun told the Associated Press.

She, however, said the striking down of these laws does not solve all problems and highlighted that the LGBTQ community still faces violence and discrimination. The dismantling of these laws is the first major step, but not the last step,” she said.

(With agency inputs)

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