Namibian government appeals ruling that struck down sodomy laws
The Namibian government has appealed a ruling that struck down the country’s apartheid-era sodomy laws. The country’s High Court last month ruled the statutes are unconstitutional.
The Namibian Broadcasting Corporation reported Justice Minister Yvonne Dausab; Prosecutor General Martha Imalwa; Attorney General Festus Mbandeka; and the Home Affairs, Safety, and Security and Defense Ministries appealed the ruling to the Namibian Supreme Court on July 20. “The government has given notice that they will appeal the landmark decriminalization ruling to the Supreme Court,” said Omar van Reene, founder of the Namibia Equal Rights Movement, a Namibian advocacy group, on Wednesday in a statement posted to Facebook. “This is done with two motives: 1) to buy cheap campaign points to their minority homophobic base (and) 2) showing that they are fighting against ‘homosexuality’ in the country.” Namibia gained its independence from South Africa in 1990. “We know our constitution is clear, that apartheid-era laws have no place in a born-free Namibia,” said van Reene. “So, fear not, dive into community and not into despair.
We will win at the Supreme Court, and this will actually only further entrench, solidify and enshrine our constitutional rights.” Neighboring Botswana and Angola are among the countries that have decriminalized consensual same-sex sexual relations over the last decade.
The Namibian Supreme Court last year ruled the country must recognize same-sex marriages legally performed elsewhere. The landmark decision sparked criticism among leading politicians and religious officials.
