In Saint Lucia, the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) struck down a law that criminalized gay sex, declaring that sections 132 and 133 of the country’s Criminal Code, which criminalized “gross indecency” and “buggery”, were not consistent with the country’s Bill of Rights.
The antiquated laws, remnants of the past when it was a British colony, banned anal intercourse between men completely, as well as any act “other than sexual intercourse… involving the use of the genital organs for the purpose of arousing or gratifying sexual desire”, except if it was performed between a man and a woman in private.
In truth, those were rarely enforced by police, but according to LGBTQIA+ advocacy group Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality (ECADE), their presence “fueled stigma, discrimination and violence” in St. Lucia, since a “buggery” conviction carried a potential prison sentence of five years, and up to 10 years for gross indecency.
“Today’s ruling is not just a win in the courts, it also represents a step towards justice for the many lives lost to violence simply for being themselves,” ECADE Executive Director Kenita Placide said in a press release. “It signals that our Caribbean can and must be a place where all people are free and equal under the law.”
In 2019, the ECADE filed legal challenges against such laws in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, and – yes – St. Lucia. In 2022, courts in Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, and St. Kitts and Nevis struck down those laws. In 2024, a court in Dominica did the same.
To date, there are still two Caribbean countries criminalizing gay sex – Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
