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PM Says He Has Some Flexibility on Section 53 Appeal
Fri, August 26, 2016
And while temper, ego, and police mishandling of basic situations took the headlines at today's house meeting - there was some real news coming out of the session - before everything went haywire. The most significant is that the Prime Minister found some wiggle room on the case for an appeal of the section 53 judgement. He says he is not prepared to appeal on the grounds that anal sex should be kept illegal - he feels it should be legal. But he says he has common cause with the Catholics in that because of a document from the Vatican:...

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"Somebody drew my attention to the statement of the Vatican of the Roman Catholic Church of the Holy See from as far back as 18th December, 2008 at the 63rd plenary of the United Nations with respect to their declaration on human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity. I have taken from them religious website, what the statement of the Catholic Church was? Statement of the Holy See on the declaration on human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity, 18th December, 2008 at the 63rd plenary assembly of the UN promoted by the French presidency of the European Union. The Holy See appreciates the attempts made in the declaration on human rights, sexual orientation, and gender identity presented at the UN general assembly on 18th December, 2008 to condemn all forms of violence against homosexual persons as well urge states to take necessary measures to put an end to all criminal penalties against them. If that is the position of the Catholic Church, what then are we joining issue over? If it is the fact that the chief justice also said that he interprets sex in the constitution to mean sexual orientation then let us talk about that. The Holy See from 2008, made clear that it could not support that. I am subject to my cabinet but, I am prepared to say to cabinet, if the Catholic Church wants clarity or even wants an appeal with respect to the extended or the interpretation of sexual orientation, that's a matter that we ought to discuss."

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