New hope for human rights activists despite staunch opposition
Friday, February 21, 2025 | 280 Views |
Hoping for change: LGBTI activists in the country hope the new government will introduce friendlier laws FILE PIC
Human rights supporters say Constitutional reforms remain necessary to protect a wide range of citizens, including additional rights to members of the LGBTQI+ community.
Although Botswana decriminalised so-called sodomy laws in 2019, protections do not extend to all LGBTQI+ people, including those identifying as intersex or transgender. Legislation proposed last fall would have expanded human rights of the LGBTQI+ community and establish better legal protections, but it was not passed. Opposition from religious groups, which continues today, is the reason, activists say.
It is a clear signal that the government’s purse is empty and that our own behaviour has left veterinary officials fighting with one hand tied behind their backs. We have been here before. During COVID-19, many of us thought we knew better. We ignored simple rules, we carried on as if the danger was someone else’s problem, and the virus took lives and left our economy on its knees. We are still broke from that experience. Yet now, with FMD...