(CNN) —
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Sunday said the country will
repeal the colonial-era Section 377A of Singapore's Penal Code, thereby decriminalizing gay sex in Singapore, but added that
same-sex marriage will continue to be illegal in the city-state.
"Sex
between consenting men should not be criminalized. There is no justification to
prosecute people for it, nor to make it a crime," he said at his annual
policy address, the National Day Rally, carried live on television.
"I
believe (repeal) is the right thing to do, and something that most Singaporeans
will now accept. This will bring the law into line with current social mores,
and I hope, provide some relief to gay Singaporeans," said the Prime
Minister.
"Like
every human society, we also have gay people in our midst. They are our fellow
Singaporeans. They are our colleagues, our friends, our family members. They
too want to live their own lives, participate in our community, and contribute
fully to Singapore," he added.
However, the
government will not change the country's legal definition of marriage, as being
between a man and a woman, Lee said, implying that laws will be strengthened to
protect that definition.
"We will
protect the definition of marriage, as contained in the Interpretation Act and
the Women's Charter, from being challenged constitutionally in the courts. We
have to amend the constitution to protect it, and we will do so," he
said, according to his official Twitter account.
A community
statement by more than 20 LGBTQ groups in Singapore called the planned
decriminalization of sex between men as "long overdue" and "a
significant milestone and a powerful statement that state-sanctioned
discrimination has no place in Singapore."
As to the
definition of marriage, the statement stressed that "any move by the
government to introduce further legislation or constitutional amendments that
signal LGBTQ+ people as unequal citizens is disappointing. We urge the
government not to heed recent calls from religious conservatives to enshrine
the definition of marriage into the constitution."
Colonial-era
law
Section 377A
of Singapore's Penal Code was promulgated in 1938 by the British colonial
government when Singapore was a British colony. It punishes gay sex -- even if
it is consensual, between adults, and takes place privately -- for up to two
years of imprisonment.
Similar laws
were imposed in territories ruled by the British empire, such as India, and
some of these countries have since revoked such laws over the years.
LGBTQ
activists in Singapore have long called for the law to be scrapped.
In 2007, the Singaporean
government repealed parts of Section 377 of its criminal law after a
comprehensive review but retained 377A.
In February
2022, Singapore's Court of Appeal ruled that the section would remain in the
law, but it cannot be enforced to prosecute men for having gay sex.
The trilingual
Prime Minister made his address in Malay, Mandarin and English, a speech
reflecting the diverse demographics in Singapore.
During his
speech, Lee addressed long-standing concerns voiced by conservative religious
groups and leaders on other related issues like same-sex marriage, which is not
currently legal in the country.
Lee said:
"We need to find the right way to reconcile and accommodate both the
traditional mores of our society, and the aspiration of gay Singaporeans to be
respected and accepted.
"Most
Singaporeans would like to keep our society like this. This is the Government's
position too," he said. "We have upheld and reinforced the importance
of families through many national policies, and we will continue to do
so," he said.
While societal
attitudes in Singapore are still largely conservative, activists say it is
changing, and the government was "considering the best way forward"
on the issues.
Some corners
of Asia have seen recent progress on the issue of same-sex marriage. In 2019,
the self-ruled island of Taiwan became the first place in Asia to legalize
same-sex marriage. In June, Thailand edged closer to becoming the first place
in Southeast Asia to legalize same-sex unions when lawmakers passed four different
bills aiming to provide greater rights to gay couples, such as the ability to
adopt children and manage assets jointly.
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