A case centred on privacy and expression
The ruling concerned sections 14 and 16 of the Sexual Offences Act. It found violations of liberty, freedom of expression and personal privacy. According to Human Dignity Trust, government lawyers had conceded that the restrictions violated these rights and could not be justified in a democratic society. [2]
Campaigners welcome years of legal work
Human Dignity Trust chief executive Téa Braun congratulated the litigant and lawyers who had pursued the case for almost five years. Human Rights Watch researcher Cristian González Cabrera placed the judgment alongside work by local and regional civil society, including the Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality.
UNAIDS links rights with public health
UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima called the decision “a win for public health as well as for human rights”. The agency argued that removing criminal penalties could help reduce stigma and discrimination that obstruct HIV services. It credited frontline communities in Dominica with leading the campaign for equal rights.