The government of Botswana is looking to overturn a landmark ruling from last month, in which a panel of three high court judges ruled that sections of the penal code that ban gay sex in the country are unconstitutional.
The case had been brought to the court by a university student, Letsweletse Motshidiemang, who argued that the government should do away with the law “in light of a changing society where homosexuality was more widely accepted.”
The judges agreed and found that not only do the laws violate privacy, liberty, and dignity but that they are also “discriminatory and serve no public interest”.
The ruling received wide international praise, especially since it arrived after Kenya’s high court upheld its own laws banning gay sex and its subsequent 14-year jail sentence.
The Guardian is reporting, however, that Botswana’s government is planning to appeal against this ruling. If successful, this means that certain laws can potentially be resuscitated, including one that punishes gay sex by up to seven years in prison.
According to attorney general Abraham Keetshabe, who released a statement related to the matter on Friday, they believe that the high court “was mistaken in its conclusion in overturning the colonial-era law.”
Keetshabe also added that he is of the view “that the high court erred in arriving at this conclusion and thus, I have decided to note an appeal with the court of appeal.”
Trees to celebrate Arbor Month