Also available in: Español
After several years of a judicial proceeding, a court in Belize declares unconstitutional article 53 of the Criminal Code that criminalized homosexuality, eliminating some barriers for the response to AIDS.
By: Dennis Castillo Corresponsales Clave
“Any person who commits an act of gross indecency with a person of the same sex in public or privately, shall be punished with imprisonment for seven years”, stipulated article 53 of the Belize Criminal Code.
Belize was one of the few countries in America that had legislation penalizing lesbian, gay, trans and intersex people until August 10, when a ruling by the Supreme Court was published, becoming the third country decriminalizing sexual practices between persons of the same sex since 2013.
The United Belize Advocacy Movement (UNIBAM) started several legal actions against such a regulation. Now, after such an important achievement for the country and the Latin American region, it will depend on the local parliament to reform the code for the court decision to be in force.
Corresponsales Clave talked to the leader and activist on the rights of LGTBI people of Belize, Caleb Orozco, one of the predecessors of this court decision.
As Orozco said, some of the organizations involved in the process were “the International Commission of Jurists, the Bar Association, and the United Movement of Belize, all of them interested during the legal claim against the Belize government with the Catholic Church”.
When the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) learnt about the regulatory situation in the country, it requested the state of Belize to implement precautionary measures for the protection of the LGTBI activists, among which Caleb Orozco, who in 2013 was life threatened with frequent violations to his rights. In that time, the law was against him and the relevant authorities did not investigate such acts and left Orozco in higher vulnerability.
The arguments presented in the case were “that article 53 violates freedom of expression, privacy, non-discrimination, equality before the law and its enforcement; we have won in all the arguments presented to the Supreme Court”, said Orozco.
This decision means “that in simple terms, a person has the right to have sexual relations in private without the stigma to be detained or treated as a criminal. The police cannot extort homosexual and heterosexual men who can have anal sex in the intimacy of their home…The decision goes beyond the right of men to have sexual relations. The protection against discrimination in our Constitution was agreed, which extends in its interpretation of sexual orientation, the base of obligations of the International Pact on Civil and Political Rights”, said the activist.
With this important decision “from the court, it is possible to eliminate barriers to advance in the legislation against discrimination, eliminating the justifications stated by state systems for discrimination and it broadens the options for supporting men who have sex with other men in the response to HIV” said Orozco to Corresponsales Clave.
Just over a month ago, a Trans activist from Belize, Erika Castellanos, welcomed the speech and position of her country at the UN High Level Meeting and showed sincere hope regarding the path that her country should follow to eliminate article 53 of the Criminal Code. Now they are getting closer.
This is an important advance for the country. The decriminalization will allow LGTBI people to feel free, without fear and under the legal protection of their own country, and they will not be forced to flee to exile. It is satisfactory for those involved whom everyday filled themselves with strength and love to make LGTBI people feel safe at their homes. Several organizations have celebrated the judgment of the Belize Court, including UNAIDS, that advocates for the elimination of punitive laws that are detrimental to the response to AIDS.
It is important to keep a strong pace towards the achievement of a legislation that respects human rights. The next step should be the elimination of criminalization of HIV transmission, an uphill task for the small Caribbean country.
All articles may be shared and published provided that the source data is quoted. .