The Speaker informed Parliament on Tuesday that the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka had cleared the way for Parliament to decriminalise same-sex relationships with a simple majority in the House. In an exhaustive 43-page ruling, a three member bench ruled that the Bill was constitutional and would not require a two-thirds majority in the house or a national referendum.
Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya was joined on the bench by Justices Vijith Malalgoda and Arjuna Obeyesekere. Initially, MP Premnath Dolawatte introduced a Private Member’s Bill to Amend the Penal Code on April 4th.
Three petitioners challenged the Bill and asked the Supreme Court to rule that it required a two-thirds majority in Parliament and a referendum, claiming that it was inconsistent with the Constitution.
Thirty other citizens and two civil society organisations then filed fourteen intervening petitions in support of the Bill.
The Penal Code of Sri Lanka currently contains provisions that allow for prosecution for ‘unnatural’ sexual relations between men and women.