Haiti may ban gay marriage, public support for LGBTQ rights
A gay rights group in Haiti is fighting to head off a proposed law that would ban same-sex marriage as well as any public demonstrations in favor of LGBTQ people.
A bill passed by the Haitian Senate earlier this summer provides for up to three years in prison and a fine of about $8,000 for either party to a marriage not between a man and a woman.
The bill also would prohibit any public support or advocacy for LGBTQ rights.
Haitian law already specifically defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Charlot Jeudy of the gay rights organization Kouraj said the legislation would violate Haiti’s constitution and his group will try to persuade members of the Chamber of Deputies to reject it.
“We have the right to protest and we have the right to be who we are and we have the right to be free,” Jeudy said in an interview.
Jeudy said his group has been collecting signatures on a petition that it hopes to present to sympathetic lawmakers in the chamber.
LGBTQ people have long faced discrimination in Haiti.
In September, a cultural festival celebrating the community in Port-au-Prince was canceled the after organizers received threats and a local government official said he would prohibit the event he said violates the country’s moral values.
The AP | August 16, 2017
Haiti Senate Votes to Ban Gay Marriage
Haiti's constitution established a secular republic but the country is marked by deep religious beliefs. "Although the state is secular, it is people of faith who are the majority," Latortue said, stressing the commonly held belief in Haiti that homosexuality is a Western practice only.A vote by the Haitian Senate to ban gay marriage as well as “public demonstration of support” for homosexuality reflects the will of the people, the chamber’s president has said. The Senate approved a bill late Tuesday that said “the parties, co-parties and accomplices” of a homosexual marriage can be punished by three years in prison and a fine of about USD 8,000.“All senators are opposed to same-sex marriage, so this simply reflects the commitments the senators made during their campaigns,” Senate President Youri Latortue told AFP. Haiti’s constitution established a secular republic but the country is marked by deep religious beliefs. “Although the state is secular, it is people of faith who are the majority,” Latortue said, stressing the commonly held belief in Haiti that homosexuality is a Western practice only.“A country has to focus on its values and traditions. Some people in other countries see it differently, but in Haiti, that’s how it’s seen.” Haitian law already defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman, making it unclear what consequences the bill, if passed, would have in practice.However, it also called for banning “any public demonstration of support for homosexuality and proselytizing in favour of such acts.” It is this ambiguous wording that raises concern among Haitian homosexuals and their advocates.“We see this as an attack on the LGBT community in this country,” said Charlot Jeudy, president of the Kouraj group, which defends the rights of homosexuals and transgender people.“This text divides our society, it reinforces prejudices and discrimination. It’s really a shame.” The two gay rights organisations still officially recognised by the state record daily instances of insults, threats and violence. Politicians “know very well that this will bring much more violence and prejudice against the LGBTI community,” Jeudy said.Only police and the judicial system can intervene in response to reported violations under the measure. The bill now goes to the Chamber of Deputies for debate, though its passage into law is all but certain.By AFP | August 3, 2017