Namibia: President Rejects Anti-LGBTQ+ Bills

The President of Namibia, Nangolo Mbumba, has declined to sign two anti-LGBTQ+ private members’ bills passed by parliament in 2023, despite recently signing another law outlawing same-sex marriage.

The bills were introduced by Swapo MP Jerry Ekandjo in response to a Supreme Court ruling in May 2023 that required the state to recognise same-sex marriages registered in countries where they are legal.

Aimed to Criminalise Same-Sex Marriage and Advocacy

The legislation sought not only to explicitly outlaw same-sex marriage, including those conducted overseas, but also to restrict activists from advocating for marriage equality.

Under the proposed laws, individuals involved in promoting, conducting, or participating in same-sex marriage ceremonies could face fines and up to six years in prison. Critics argued that the bills were unconstitutional and would suppress freedom of expression and association.

President Rejects Bills on Constitutional Grounds

According to The Namibian, Minister in the Presidency Christine //Hoebes addressed the subject of the bills in Parliament last week in response to Ekandjo’s questions about their status.

She confirmed that President Mbumba would not sign the bills because they were not passed by a two-thirds majority in Parliament and could be challenged on constitutional grounds.

“In considering the bills, the president was concerned about whether they had gone through a proper law-making process,” she said, adding that the process raised concerns about “whether it meets the constitutional test and the additional procedural requirements.”

A Hollow Victory for LGBTQ+ Rights?

While Mbumba’s rejection of the bills offers a reprieve for Namibia’s LGBTQ+ community, it is a limited victory. In October 2024, the president signed a separate discriminatory Marriage Bill into law.

Although the new Marriage Act does not include the proposed restrictions on advocating for marriage equality, it explicitly defines marriage as “a legal union between two persons of the opposite sex.” It further states that “a marriage or marital union between persons of the same sex wherever concluded” is not recognised in Namibia.

Transgender Namibians are also excluded from marriage rights, as the law defines individuals of the “opposite sex” strictly by their sex assigned at birth.

In June 2024, the Namibia High Court declared the country’s ban on same-sex intimacy unconstitutional and invalid. The state, however, appealed the decision to the Supreme Court.