"Fear Eats the Soul of a Nation..."

Activists Condemn Singapore Court Gay Ruling

Top court rejected two constitutional challenges to the country's sodomy law

Darren Wee
October 31, 2014


Singaporean LGBTI activists are 'shocked and disappointed' by the country's top court ruling to uphold the anti-gay law.

The Court of Appeal on Wednesday rejected two challenges to the law, including one brought by a couple of 15 years, Kenneth Chee and Gary Lee.

'With this verdict, an opportunity to showcase Singapore as a truly accepting, open and inclusive society – and a great place to live, work and play – has been missed,' 14 local LGBTI rights groups said in a joint statement.

'An opportunity to demonstrate that we all stand by our guiding principle of being one united people, building a democratic society based on justice and equality, has been missed.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) called the decision 'a major setback for equal rights in Singapore.'

'Singapore likes to advertise itself as a modern Asian country and business destination,' said Boris Dittrich, advocacy director of the LGBTI rights program at HRW.

'But this discriminatory anti-LGBT law is wholly out of step with international rights standards that guarantee protections, including for sexual orientation and gender identity.'

The government said it would not enforce section 377a of the penal code, which criminalizes sex between men with a maximum penalty of two year in jail, but would keep it in the law to reflect the conservative views of society.

'It is not an imposition for a segment to seek the same rights as the rest of society. To be viewed as equal in the eyes of the law, to feel safe at home, and to be protected against discrimination, mistreatment, even physical and emotional harm, is a right to which every Singaporean should be entitled, and not denied on the basis of whom they love,' the groups said.

Watch a video about Gary and Kenneth and below:

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"The government said it would not enforce section 377a of the penal code... but would keep it in the law to reflect the conservative views of society."  -- This is perhaps the saddest excuse for allowing hatred to flourish that I've ever heard of, and so the struggle for freedom and equality continues...

"Fear Eats the Soul"