Singapore To Decriminalise Gay Sex, Will Continue To Uphold Same-Sex Marriage Ban

The Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong announced gay sex will be decriminalised, but same-sex marriage will continue to be illegal. The colonial era Section 377A of Singapore’s Penal Code that criminalised gay sex will be repealed.

The colonial era Section 377A of Singapore’s Penal Code was introduced in 1938 and established a two-year jail term for “any act of gross indecency” between two men.

Lee Hsien Loong said at the National Day Rally, his annual policy address, that consenting sex between men should not be criminalised. Loong said, “There is no justification to prosecute people for it, nor make it a crime. He added that repealing the law is the right thing to do and will hopefully provide relief to gay Singaporeans.

Singapore Decriminalise Gay Sex

While gay sex will be decriminalised in the nation, the government will not change the country’s legal definition of marriage as being between a man and a woman. Loong said from his official Twitter account that they would "protect" the definition of marriage from being challenged in the courts. He added that the government would have to "amend the Constitution" to protect it.

More than 20 LGBTQ groups in Singapore made a community statement and described the plan to decriminalise gay sex as men as “a significant milestone and powerful statement that state-sanctioned discrimination has no place in Singapore”.

Loong addressed the concern of conservative religious groups and said, “We need to find the right way to reconcile and accommodate both the traditional more of our society and the aspiration of gay Singaporeans to be respected and accepted."

The community statement also regarded the definition of marriage and said, “Any move by the government to introduce further legislation or constitutional amendments that signal LGBTQ+ people as unequal citizens is disappointing.” They urged the government to not “enshrine the definition of marriage into the constitution”.

LGBTQ+ activists in Singapore have long called for scrapping the law and in 2007, parts of Section 377 were repealed but Section 377A was retained.

In February 2022, Singapore’s Court of Appeal ruled that the colonial era section would remain in the law but cannot be enforced to prosecute men for having gay sex.

Singapore's Ministry of Communications and Information stated that even after Section 377A was repealed, LGBTQ media content will be restricted and will receive higher age ratings.

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