A law, dating from the colonial era and which criminalizes sexual relations between men, will soon be repealed by the Singapore government. The Prime Minister considered that the situation had changed compared to 2007, when the authorities had decided to keep this law.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced on Sunday that his government will soon repeal a colonial-era law criminalizing sex between men. “The government will repeal (the law) and decriminalize sex between men. I believe this is the right thing to do and something most Singaporeans will now accept,” he added during a speech.
The Prime Minister estimated that the situation has changed compared to 2007, when the authorities decided to keep this law. Homosexuals “are much more accepted today” in Singapore, he said. The repeal of the law “will put the legislation in line with the evolution of mentalities”, judged Lee Hsien Loong.
A law that provides two years in prison for homosexual acts
The law, a holdover from British colonial rule, provides for a maximum sentence of two years in prison for homosexual acts. It is not enforced in practice, but gay rights advocates say it still denies members of the gay community their rights, despite the city-state’s increasingly modern culture.
The Prime Minister made it clear that he would, however, continue to “defend” marriage as the union of a man and a woman.