Time to repeal Section 377A that 'humiliates, hurts gay people', refusing to take a position an abdication of duty: Shanmugam

that criminalises sex between men, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said on Monday that the time has come for the law — which"humiliates and hurts gay people" — to be repealed.

Mr Shanmugam was speaking during a debate in Parliament over the two Bills related to the removal of Section 377A from the Penal Code — one on the repeal and the other on amending the Constitution to protect the definition of marriage as being between a man and a woman. “Is it fair that gays have to live in this way? This is not something that we should accept, even if we personally disagree with homosexuality.”The Government’s position is that for conduct to be criminal, there should generally be an issue of public order or interest.

Compared to when Parliament had its first substantive debate over Section 377A in 2007, society is now ready to accept its repeal, with government engagements showing that even Singaporeans who want to retain the law do not want to see it actively enforced, said Mr Shanmugam.'SIGNIFICANT' LEGAL RISK

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