The Supreme Court Of Kenya on Friday said that the decision to deny lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) members their right to register as a non-governmental organization (NGO), despite homosexuality being illegal in the nation, discriminatory.
This followed a ruling made in 2013 by lower courts to deny members of the community in Kenya to register a Non-Governmental Organization for the advancement of their rights.
The move has elicited criticism from leaders both in the religious and political arena with some noting that the ruling contradicted existing laws on the same.
Christ is the Answer Ministries (CITAM) which is one of the biggest churches in Kenya, in a statement questioned the timing of the court’s verdict.
The church encouraged Kenyans of moral integrity to reject, resist and oppose this Supreme court ruling as it will erode societal norms and morals.
The Association of Pentecostal and Evangelical Clergy of Kenya has also written to the National Assembly urging the legislators to initiate a bill that institutes harsher penalties for those practicing what they term “unnatural practices.”
Further in their letter, the APECK Executive Committee wants a Bill that bars registration of organizations that promote or practice LGBTQ and reviews the penal code to make criminal provisions for other unnatural practices not captured in the penal code like lesbianism, transgender and queer practices.
According to APECK, Article 45 of the Kenya constitution 2010 defines marriage as between people of the opposite sex and identifies a family as a natural fundamental unit of society and the necessary basis of social order.
What is LGBTQIA?
L-Lesbian, A woman whose enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction is to other women. Some lesbians may prefer to identify as gay or as gay women.
G-Gay, people whose enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attractions are to people of the same sex. Sometimes lesbian is the preferred term for women.
B-Bisexual, a person who can form enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attractions to those of the same gender or more than one gender. People may experience this attraction in differing ways and degrees over their lifetime.
T-Transgender, it is an umbrella term for people whose gender identity and/or gender expression differs from what is typically associated with the sex they were assigned at birth. People under the transgender umbrella may describe themselves using one or more of a wide variety of terms— including transgender or nonbinary.
Q-Queer, used by some people whose sexual orientation is not exclusively heterosexual or straight. This umbrella term includes people who have nonbinary, gender-fluid, or gender nonconforming identities.
Q– can also mean questioning. This term describes someone who is questioning their sexual orientation or gender identity.
I-Intersex-used to describe a person with one or more innate sex characteristics, including genitals, internal reproductive organs, and chromosomes, that fall outside of traditional conceptions of male or female bodies.
A– Asexual describes a person who does not experience sexual attraction. Sometimes shortened to “ace,” it is an umbrella term that can also include people who are demisexual, meaning they do experience some sexual attraction.
Gray sexual, means those who may not fit the strictest definition of the word asexual; means they experience little to no romantic attraction and/or have little to no desire to form romantic relationships.