Lgbtq rights in kenya
Kenya
Notable progress has been made in the recognition of the human rights of LGBTIQ people in Kenya in the last decade, largely through victories in the courts. In 2018, the Court of Appeal in Mombasa ruled that forced anal testing was unconstitutional, and in 2024 the petitioners in that case were awarded compensation. In 2023, the Supreme Court of Kenya upheld the conclusion of the lower courts in a judgment that safeguarded the freedom of association of LGBTQ organizations by allowing them to officially register. This evolving judgment was followed by heightened pushback. There were protests in several counties and increased homophobic remarks by religious and political leaders against LGBTIQ persons. In April 2023, MP Peter Kaluma proposed a Family Protection Bill pursuing to further criminalize consensual same-sex relations. The bill has not been tabled before Parliament.
In response to a series of homophobic protests and remarks, the Centre for Minority Rights and Strategic Litigation filed a petition to force the respondents to end inciting hatred and discrimination against LGBTIQ persons. In 2024, the High Court in Mombasa issued a temporary order in favor
Why are Kenya and Uganda cracking down on LGBTQ rights?
Kenya and Uganda are moving to further curtail the rights of womxn loving womxn, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people, whose relationships are already deemed illegal in the conservative East African nations.
After a session lasting nearly seven hours, Ugandan lawmakers approved the Anti-Homosexuality Act on Tuesday, ordering harsh penalties for anyone who engages in same-sex activity.
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end of listWhile more than 30 African countries including Uganda already bar same-sex relationships, the recent law passed appears to be the first to outlaw merely identifying as LGBTQ, Human Rights View said.
In Kenya, a February ruling by the Supreme Court upheld verdicts by lower courts stating that the government could not lawfully refuse to register an organisation calling itself the National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC).
But President William Ruto and many
Whether the Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court had the jurisdiction to decline to admit a party’s record of appeal
Summary Significance: The instant application sought review of the decision of the Deputy Registrar declining to own up the applicant’s record of appeal. The court held that by restating the relevant rules and by giving reasons as to why the applicant’s pleadings were declined, the Deputy Registrar was cogent and that was explanatory enough and he did not run afoul of any law.
Attorney General v Halal Meat Products Limited (Application 22 of 2016) [2023] KESC 9 (KLR) (17 February 2023) (Ruling)
Neutral citation: [2023] KESC 9 (KLR)
Supreme Court of Kenya
I Lenaola, SCJ
Reported by Kakai Toili
Jurisdiction - jurisdiction of the Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court - jurisdiction to decline to disclose a party’s record of appeal - whether the Deputy Registrar had the jurisdiction to decline to admit a party’s write down of appeal - Supreme Court (Amendment) Rules, 2016 (repealed), rules 4A(1)(b) and 4A(2).
Brief facts
The applicant filed the insta
In this commentary, JURIST's incoming West Africa Chief of Staff Lana Osei and East Africa Bureau Chief Natasha Kahungi compare anti-LGBT legislation in their abode countries of Ghana and Kenya, arguing that hardened attitudes towards LGBT people endanger their well-being and fundamental rights...
Recent Afrobarometer survey numbers (Round 8, 2019-2021) paints a stark picture with 86% of Kenyans and 93% of Ghanaians expressing intolerance towards the LGBT society. This high level of intolerance exists despite the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guaranteeing non-discrimination based on sexual orientation. Furthermore, across Africa, laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual activity remain commonplace. Contrarily, South Africa stands as a notable exception with its recognition of same-sex relationships (1997) and same-sex marriages (2006). This commentary delves into the recent discourse surrounding anti-LGBT legislation in Ghana and Kenya, exploring the complex interplay between cultural norms, legal frameworks, the global shove for human rights, and the implications of anti-LGBT legislation on the community.
The Ghanaian Experience
The debate over LGBT rights in Gha
How an LGBTQ court ruling sent Kenya into a moral panic
Kenya is in the throes of a full-blown existential moral panic. If the country’s politicians, clergy, self-anointed defenders of “traditional culture” and media are to be believed, the long-dreaded homosexual zombie apocalypse is upon us, bringing hordes of insatiable homosexuals hungry for our children’s impressionable brains.
A February decree by the Supreme Court that the constitution barred discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation has sparked weeks of hysterical breast-beating across the territory, with many fearful that it could open Pandora’s closet and precipitate the end of civilisation as we realize it.
Egged on by news anchors and editors keen to serve up drama and gore in an effort to retain audiences, everyone from President William Ruto to political pundits has been lining up to condemn the court for upholding rulings by lower courts that the government could not lawfully refuse to register an organisation calling itself the National Gay and Queer woman Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC).
The jeremiads dominating the airwaves and social media proclaim this as the beginning of the end.
In an interview with one of t