Gabon lawmakers have voted to reverse an archaic law that criminalised homosexuality, making it one of the few countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to legalise sexual relations between people of the same sex.
In July 2019, Gabon became the 70th country in the world to ban gay sex under a penal code that vowed to publish ‘offenders’ with up to six months in jail and a fine of five million Central African francs (over £6,300).
Although the decision was made in July, it wasn’t reported until December. At the time, Mac-Iyalla – an LGBTQ+ activist in Ghana – said it had “further sent the LGBT community underground and has created harassment.” Less than a year later, 48 members of parliament voted to revise the outdated law.