London, UK – 6 September 2018
India’s Supreme Court has just struck down section 377 of its penal code. This means the court has decriminalised homosexuality and it affects 18% of the worlds LGBTs.
Comment from Peter Tatchell, Director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation
“This historic legal ruling sets free from criminalisation almost one fifth of the world’s LGBT+ people. It is the biggest, most impactful gay law reform in human history. I hope it will inspire and empower similar legal challenges in many of the 70 countries that still outlaw same-sex relations, 35 of which are member states of the Commonwealth.
“Ending the ban on homosexuality is just a start. There are still huge challenges to end the stigma, discrimination and hate crime that LGBTs suffer in India.
“Indian LGBTs now revert to the legal status of non-criminalisation that existed prior to the British colonisers imposing the homophobic section 377 of the criminal code in the nineteenth century.”