LGBT rights in Somalia

LGBT rights in Somalia

Same-sex sexual activity legal? Illegal[1]
Penalty:
 Up to death [2]
Military service n/a
Discrimination protections None
Family rights
Recognition of
relationships		 No recognition of same-sex relationships
Adoption n/a

LGBT rights in Somalia fall under the scope of Somalia's federal laws. As such, homosexuality is illegal in the country and is punishable by up to 3 years imprisonment.[1]

Legislation

Homosexuality was criminalised in the territory of present-day Somalia in 1888.[3] Under Article 409 of the Somali Penal Code introduced in 1973, sexual intercourse with a person of the same sex is punishable by imprisonment from three months to three years. An "act of lust" other than sexual intercourse is punishable by a prison term of two months to two years. Under Article 410 of the Somali Penal Code, an additional security measure may accompany sentences for homosexual acts, usually coming in the form of police surveillance to prevent "re-offending".[4]Threats have been made that indicate that Somalia tolerates executions of homosexuals[2]

HIV/AIDS prevention

Family planning services are hard to access, as is fact-based information on human sexuality. Humanitarian workers have stated that Islamic social mores often make it difficult to publicly talk about how the virus can be spread.[5] Since 1999, much of the AIDS/HIV education and care has come from international organizations such as the United Nations.[5]

Despite this, Somalia has one of the lowest HIV infection rates on the continent. This is attributed to the Muslim nature of Somali society and adherence of Somalis to Islamic morals.[6] While the estimated HIV prevalence rate in Somalia in 1987 (the first case report year) was 1% of adults,[6] a more recent estimate from 2007 now places it at only 0.5% of the nation's adult population.[7]

LGBT organizations

As of 2004, one group reportedly existed for LGBT people in Somalia.[8]

Living conditions

The U.S. Department of State's 2010 Human Rights Report found that “sexual orientation was considered a taboo topic, and there was no public discussion of this issue in any region of the country," and that "there were no reports of societal violence or discrimination based on sexual orientation."[9]

Summary table

Same-sex sexual activity legal (Penalty: Up to Death)
Equal age of consent
Anti-discrimination laws in employment only
Anti-discrimination laws in the provision of goods and services
Anti-discrimination laws in all other areas (Incl. indirect discrimination, hate speech)
Same-sex marriages
Recognition of same-sex couples
Step-child adoption by same-sex couples
Joint adoption by same-sex couples
Gays and lesbians allowed to serve openly in the military
Right to change legal gender
Access to IVF for lesbians
Commercial surrogacy for gay male couples
MSMs allowed to donate blood

See also

References

  1. 1 2 The Politics of Homosexuality in Africa
  2. 1 2 Noor Ali. "Gay Somali refugees face death threats".
  3. ↑ "Where is it illegal to be gay?". BBC News. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  4. ↑ United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Refworld - Somalia Country Assessment" (PDF). Refworld.
  5. 1 2 http://data.unaids.org/pub/Report/2008/somalia_2008_country_progress_report_en.pdf
  6. 1 2 "Religious and cultural traits in HIV/AIDS epidemics in sub-Saharan Africa" (PDF). Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  7. ↑ "Somalia". World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 14 May 2009. Retrieved 31 May 2009.
  8. ↑ "Death Hangs Over Somali Queers". sodomylaws.org. May 3, 2004. Archived from the original on 11 August 2004. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  9. ↑ http://paei.state.gov/documents/organization/160144.pdf

External links

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