WASHINGTON, CMC -The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has welcomed a court ruling which found that sections 9 and 12 of the Sexual Offences Act of Barbados, criminalizing private consensual same-sex relations, are unconstitutional.
“In this historical case, decided on December 12, 2022, and published on May 25, 2023, the Supreme Court of Barbados ruled that the offense of “Buggery,” under section 9, and the offense of “Serious Indecency,” under section 12, both of the Sexual Offences Act, are unconstitutional, null and void, and of no effect to the extent that they apply to consensual sexual relations between adults in private,” the IACHR said in a statement.
It said before this decision Barbados had, through the “Buggery” provision, the harshest penalty criminalizing private consensual same-sex relations in the Americas and the Caribbean, with persons convicted being liable to a maximum sentence of up to life imprisonment.
In its 2015 Violence Against LBGTI Persons in the Americas report, the IACHR noted that although these laws have been largely unenforced, they can have pervasive societal effects.
“The criminalization of consensual same-sex relations legitimizes and reinforces prejudices against lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans persons, or those perceived as such while sending a social message to communities and societies that discrimination and violence are condoned or tolerated.”
The IACHR, a principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), said that it wanted to reiterate “that the criminalization of consensual relationships of LGBTI adults violates the principle of equality and non-discrimination, as well as the right to privacy and human dignity.
“The IACHR calls on all the Americas and Caribbean states to repeal laws that criminalize consensual sexual relations between adults or allow for the prosecution of LGBTI persons in any other form. States must also take positive action to create a legal framework to protect LGBTI persons from violence and discrimination,” it said.
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