Malawi parliament won’t repeal anti-gay law quickly

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Henry Phoya (Photo courtesy of FaceOfMalawi.com)

Parliamentary leader Henry Phoya in Malawi says the parliament’s current session will not act on President Joyce Banda’s call to repeal the country’s law against homosexual activities, Malawi Today reported.

Banda recently called for repeal of anti-homosexuality laws that have drawn criticism from the country’s foreign aid suppliers, which cut back on funding for Malawi last year.

Under Malawi’s current laws, homosexual activity among men or women is punishable by up to five years in prison.

Phoya said about the agenda of the current session of parliament, “In our meeting this time round, we don’t have any business on same-sex marriages and you can cross check with our time-table. If you ask me about what the president said, then the message was that she would like to see these laws reviewed some time in future.”

In a related statement, the country’s justice minister, Ralph Kasambara, said no legal action will be taken against a lesbian couple who reportedly got engaged recently.

“There’s currently a moratorium on the law, so there will be no arrests or prosecutions based on the law,” Malawi Today reported Kasambara saying on Zodiak Radio.