SASOD to step up fight to decriminalize same-sex intimacy in 2025 – director

In a bid to eradicate all forms of discrimination — especially on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression — the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD) says it will be upping its advocacy and other efforts next year to lobby for the abolishment of laws that criminalise same-sex intimacy in Guyana.
The Guyana Together campaign and the Rotary Club of Georgetown hosted a Human Rights Forum on Wednesday, in which the managing director of the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD), Joel Simpson, delivered remarks and made known some of the plans of his organisation for next year.
“Let me say briefly what you can expect from us next year. We want to take the message to other Rotary Clubs as well, so I’m going to expect Natasha to link us up to other Rotary Clubs in Guyana, so we could do events like this with them as well and reach more people. We also will have a focus, particularly in 2025, in engaging and bringing forward the voices of religious leaders and trade union leaders to call for decriminalization of same-sex intimacy,” Simpson has said.
Guyana’s laws criminalise any same-sex sexual activity between adults, and the maximum penalty is life in prison. Though there has been very little, if any, enforcement of these laws in recent times, there has been a clear and consistent call from human rights organisations and foreign missions for the Guyana Government to repeal the legislation.
SASOD has, for years, been advocating for the abolition of these laws, and on Wednesday, noting that the Guyana society is becoming more accepting of members of the LGBTQ+ community, he credited the Guyana Together campaign for playing a significant role in fighting homophobia.
“The Guyana Together campaign was launched in early September of 2003, and we’ve now had our first full calendar year; so, just about 16 months. In those 16 months, we have launched three videos with messengers representing different demographics of Guyanese society, and those feature stories from a lesbian woman, a gay man, and a transgender man, along with the allies in their lives, including a second mother, a sister, and a good friend. Views of our videos and our content, both on social media and mainstream media combined, over the past 16 months have surpassed three million, and we’re very happy about that.”
Simpson has added. “We’ve had over 100 businesses and organizations endorse the campaign, and scores of individuals pledging, signing the Guyana Together pledge, including many Rotarians who were invited to do so in January, when we were first here for the launch of our diversity, equity, and inclusion project. Our partnership with Rotary this year has been very instrumental in bringing our message to professional leaders across Guyana, both in the private and public sectors.”
A few months ago, President of the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana Inc. (THAG), Dee George, noted that criminalisation of same sex-intimacy is costing the country significant potential revenue through tourism.
She noted that, globally, the LGBTQ+ tourism market accounts for approximately 7 to 10 per cent of the total travel industry, and that by alienating this market segment, Guyana is not benefiting from a potentially high-spending, high-frequency demographic.