Court of Appeals sides with Botswana’s gay rights’ group

Botswana's Court of Appeals backed the request of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual of Botswana (LEGABIBO) organization for official recognition. The court, on Wednesday, dismissed the Home Affairs Minister Edwin Batshu's rejection of LEGABIBO's application.

On an article published by IOL, Batshu argued that the application might encourage the LGBT community to break the law. Homosexuality is an offense punishable by law under Botswana's penal code of 1965.

However, the court refers to the rejection of registration as unconstitutional. Judge Ian Kirby, head of the nation's Court of Appeals, said in a report by Reuters, that the government's move to ban the group "interferes with the most fundamental way with the respondents' right to form an association to protect and promote their interest." Kirby emphasized that the group has the right to be allowed to campaign for changes in the anti-gay laws. Kirby also said, "That concern or reason for refusal was irrational on the evidence before us, so there can be no question of his decision being necessary in the interests of public order."

The decision handed down by Kirby from a five-judge bench upheld a High Court decision on 2014 to allow the applicants to assemble and associate under the name LEGABIBO. It was a decision supporting the rights of the LGBT community in Africa's nations which are mostly anti-gay. Botswana is supposed to be a democratic nation yet gay rights are highly dismissed and homosexual acts are prohibited.

Section 13 of Botswana's Constitution titled Protection of freedom of assembly and association states that ,"...no person shall be hindered in the enjoyment of his freedom of assembly and association, that is to say, his right to assemble freely and associate with other persons and in particular to form or belong to trade unions or other associations for the protection of his interests." Furthermore, the section also states that, "Nothing contained in or done under the authority of any law shall be held inconsistent with or in contravention of this section..."

Cindy Kelemi, a worker of a local health advocacy group, BONELA, pointed out that there are still so many things to be done to support the rights of the LGBT community.

President Ian Khama of Botswana, however, is in contrast with the idea of promoting homosexual rights. Khama upholds an anti-gay agenda which firmly emphasizes the unlawfulness of homosexual act. His government refuses to distribute condoms to prisons. Health groups are pointing this as a reason for the country's position as one of the leader in the worlds' highest rates of HIV infection.

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gay, homosexuals, homosexuality, Gay rights, LEGABIBO, LGBT, Court of Appeals, Khama, Botswana, Africa, anti-gay, homophobic, HIV, AIDS, Condoms, prison, health, Healthcare

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