Rwandan Justice Minister denies plans to criminalize homosexuality.
A report from Kigali-based New Times and distributed by allAfrica.com quotes Minister of Justice Tharcisse Karugarama as refuting reports that the government intends to criminalize homosexuality:
“The government I serve and speak for on certain issues cannot and will not in any way criminalize homosexuality; sexual orientation is a private matter and each individual has his or her own orientation – - this is not a State matter at all,” said Karugarama.
Karugarama cites reports from international gay rights organizations who had said that a proposed law was to be debated in Rwanda’s lower Chamber of Deputies on Dec 16. Later reports held that the vote would take place by Dec. 18. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission now says that a vote was abruptly postponed for the week of Dec. 21. Karugarama denies that there are any plans for a vote:
“They allege that the law was to be passed in Parliament on December 16, but sincerely there was nothing like that in the parliament that day.” He clearly stated that; “these people should distinguish between issues debated by private parties and concrete proposals from the government.” He hastened to add that the government has held a meeting with its development partners on this particular issue and told them their position ‘which is that the government has no intentions whatsoever to criminalize homosexuality.
