Niue: Tally of nations with anti-homosexuality laws drops to 65

South Pacific island nation of Niue repeals law it inherited from New Zealand

**Pride marcher in New Zealand poses with the flag of the tiny island nation Niue. (Claire-Eastham-Farrelly photo courtesy of NZTV)**

The South Pacific island nation of Niue has repealed its anti-homosexuality law, which it inherited from New Zealand when Niue became independent in 1974.

The repeal of that old law moved the number of nations in this site’s tally of nations with anti-homosexuality laws down to 65.

LGBTQ rights journalist Rob Salerno, an editor for Erasing 76 Crimes, reported the news today in his LGBTQ Global newsletter. (Click here to subscribe to it.)

Map shows the location of Niue in the South Pacific Ocean about 1,500 miles northeast of New Zealand. — Map shows the location of Niue in the South Pacific Ocean about 1,500 miles northeast of New Zealand and 3,000 miles east of Australia.

This is the newsletter’s update about Niue:

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The tiny South Pacific country Niue decriminalized homosexuality last June, although it’s taken this long for anyone to notice. Niue is a tiny country of about 1,600 people that’s formally part of the Realm of New Zealand, and is not a UN member state, although it is generally recognized as sovereign. Niue inherited its buggery law upon independence from New Zealand in 1974, and although New Zealand’s parliament passed a bill repealing it in 2007, it was never accepted by Niue, so it was null and void.

Niue’s parliament passed the Niue (Sexual Offences) Amendment Act last May, and it took effect upon being signed by the Speaker in June 2024. The bill was formally gazetted in March 2025, although I can’t seem to find a copy of it anywhere. I’m taking Human Dignity Trust’s word that it removes the buggery provisions, but I am curious if it makes any other related amendments to laws – so if anyone knows where to find a copy of the bill, please let me know

Niue’s decriminalization brings the total of criminalizing states back down to 65 – following recriminalization by Trinidad & Tobago earlier this year. It also continues a decriminalization trend in the South Pacific, where Fiji (2010), Palau (2014), Nauru (2016) Cook Islands (2023) all decriminalized in the last 15 years, leaving only six countries with laws against homosexuality: Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Kiribati, Tuvalu, and Samoa.