'Null and void': Judge strikes down Saint Kitts anti-gay law

A top court for nine eastern Caribbean nations and territories has ruled that sexual orientation and homosexual activity are protected under the right to privacy, invalidating colonial-era laws that criminalised homosexual behaviour in Saint Kitts and Nevis.

Anti-sodomy laws were challenged in court by Saint Kitts and Nevis Alliance for Equality (SKNAFE) and Jamal Jeffers, a gay man, in January of last year according to Loop, a Caribbean news outlet.

“This decision strongly establishes that a person’s sexuality should never be the basis for any discrimination. We welcome the recognition of this fact, one for which we have long advocated,” said Tynetta McKoy, the executive director of SKNAFE, according to Loop.

Gay people have faced discrimination in the region, and the ruling has been celebrated by gay rights groups as a step towards equality and freedom. SKNAFE and Jeffers had argued that the right to liberty includes the right to consensual sex and partnership with a person of their choosing.

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