In a landmark ruling for homosexual rights campaigners, legal guidelines banning same-sex acts between males have been dominated unconstitutional in Namibia.
Convictions for the colonial-era offences of “sodomy” and “unnatural sexual offences” had been uncommon however fuelled discrimination in opposition to homosexual males who lived in worry of arrest.
No legal guidelines exist prohibiting intercourse between between girls in Namibia.
Marrying somebody of the identical intercourse continues to be unlawful within the southern African nation.
But when a same-sex couple weds overseas after which returns to the nation, their union is legally recognised.
After Friday’s judgement was learn out at a excessive courtroom within the capital, Windhoek, campaigners for the LGBTQ group Equal Namibia shared photos of people hugging in court.
“Welcome to a brand new Namibia. A born-free Namibia,” the group mentioned on social media.
The time period “born-free” was most famously utilized in neighbouring South Africa to explain the primary era of kids rising up within the daybreak of democracy after white-minority rule led to 1994.
The courtroom case was introduced by a Namibian activist known as Friedel Dausab, with backing from the British charity Human Dignity Belief.
“It will not be a criminal offense to like anymore,” Mr Dausab mentioned reacting to the decision.
Summing up his feelings, he advised the Reuters information company he was “simply completely satisfied”.
The UN has additionally applauded the ruling, calling it a “highly effective step” in the direction of a extra inclusive nation that will additionally enhance entry to well being providers and HIV therapy.
Fearing a backlash to the ruling, the rights group Amnesty Worldwide is urging the Namibian authorities to make sure the security and dignity of LGBTQ folks.
It mentioned it had already documented cases of “alarming” and “threatening” speech within the nation in the course of the run-up to the courtroom case.
Namibia, first colonised by Germany, gained independence from South Africa in 1990 after a protracted bush warfare.
