Senegal amends constitution to ban same-sex marriage after landslide vote
A man holds a sign reading ‘No to LGBT agenda’ during a protest in Senegal in 2021 (Getty Images)
The National Assembly of Senegal has amended the country’s constitution to define marriage exclusively as “the union between a man and a woman”, thus banning same-sex marriage.
The amendment was made on 29 June following a vote that saw all 129 members of the assembly vote in favour and zero against.
Before the change, the constitution’s definition of marriage noted: “Marriage and the family constitute the natural and moral foundation of human society, and are placed under the protection of the State.”
Same-sex marriage has never been legal in Senegal, but the constitution’s wording around the matter has previously been vague.
Same-sex sexual activity has been prohibited in Senegal under article 319 of the Penal Code since 1965, five years after the country gained independence from France. Both men and women are affected by the law, which describes the activity as “unnatural acts”.
Following the constitution change, an anonymous Senegalese citizen told Erasing 76 Crimes: “There is little doubt that [the ruling PASTEF party] is placing great emphasis on this aspect of constitutional change in order to reassure the Senegalese people that it will pursue an anti-LGBT agenda, following the tightening of the Criminal Code in the spring so ‘unnatural acts’ are now punishable by five to 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of 10 million CFA francs [about £13,000 GBP].”
The source went on to say that the amendment “helps to rally the ranks within the ruling party following the rifts that led to the dismissal of former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko”.
In March this year, Senegal’s National Assembly passed a bill that will double the maximum penalty for same-sex relations, making them punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
The law, which modified the penal code, passed by 135 votes to zero, with three abstentions.
In addition to criminalising “any sexual act or act of a sexual nature between two people of the same sex”, the bill also penalises anyone who accuses another of same-sex offences “without proof”, while “anyone who engages in advocacy” for same-sex relations can be handed three to seven years in prison.
As per Le Monde, lawmaker Diaraye Ba declared during the debate, to the applause of some of her colleagues: “Homosexuals will no longer breathe in this country. Homosexuals will no longer have freedom of expression in this country.”
As per Reuters, Imam Babacar Sylla, leader of And Samm Jikko Yi, a network of Islamic and civil society organisations, urged President Bassirou Diomaye Faye to sign the bill into law as soon as possible.
“The longer it takes, the more complicated it will be. And these people, whom I consider a public danger, will continue to escape,” he said.
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