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Abuja- based activist claims ‘Out-lawing Same Sex Marriage Is
Unconstitutional’
Newsdiaryonline Thur Dec 1,2011
David Mark:Senate President
A human rights activist based in Abuja, Barrister
T Osuagwu Ugochukwu has claimed in a
statement today that the
bill which outlaws same sex marriage in Nigeria
is
unconstitutional.According to him “the passing of the Bill out-lawing
same –sex marriage by the Senate 2 days ago by penalizing the
act with a 14-year jail term cannot hold more so when our
Constitution is yet to be amended.
This Bill aims to outlaw, including through criminal sanctions,
marriages between persons of the same sex or gender and does not
recognize the union of people of the same sex married outside
Nigeria. Provisions in the Bill violate sections 37, 38, 40 and
42 of Nigeria’s Constitution and the analogous provisions of the
African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (i.e. articles 2,
3, 11, and 28) and the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (ICCPR) (i.e. articles 2, 18, 19, 21, 22, and
26).
It is his contention that “the Bill singles out one group of
people to be deprived of rights that all people enjoy as
guaranteed by the 1999 Constitution and international human
rights treaties to which Nigeria is a state party. In
particular, the Bill violates the right to freedom from
discrimination as recognized in section 42, 1, of the 1999
Constitution:
A citizen of Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group,
place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion shall not,
by reason only that he is such a person –
(a) be subjected either expressly by, or in the practical
application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any executive or
administrative action of the government, to disabilities or
restrictions to which citizens of Nigeria of other communities,
ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political
opinions are not made subject . . . .
The Bill defines “Same Gender Marriage” as “the coming together
of persons of the same sex with the purpose of leaving together
as husband and wife or for other purposes of same sexual
relationship.” Under the Bill, any person who “entered into a
same gender marriage contract” would be subject to up to three
years imprisonment. This is in contravention of section 37 of
the Nigerian Constitution, which guarantees the right to freedom
of private and family life and to freedom of association. The
expansive clause extending the definition of “Same Gender
Marriage” to other same sexual relationships, could lead to
arbitrary arrests on the basis of allegations about sexual
orientation, rumours of sexual behaviour or objection to gender
presentatione,the activist says
Ugochukwu insists
that the Nigerian government has an obligation to promote and
protect the human rights of its population without distinction
of any kind, including sexual orientation or gender identity. As
a member of the UN Human Rights Council, Nigeria is required to
uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of
human rights of all people regardless of their sexual
orientation. I therefore urge the President not to assent to
this Bill until the Nigerian Constitution is amended to tinker
with Sections 37 and 42.
The Senate earlier in the week passed a bill which criminalizes
same-sex marriage.And Nigerians have hailed the move
especially since the practice is seen as alien
to this society
Th
This is the document referred to in the Witness
Statement on Oath of Clifford O. Kokogho as
“Exhibit
COK.2”
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