Singapore has not curbed power of anti-gay law, says Attorney General
Singapore’s Attorney General still has the right to prosecute under Singapore’s anti-gay law, Section 377A, he said on Tuesday (2 October).
It comes amid intense debate over the legislation.
Attorney-General Lucien Wong responded to suggestions from former attorneys-general that Singapore’s Government and Parliament may have directed the public prosecutor not to pursue cases.
‘Such comments may give rise to the inaccurate impression that the exercise of the Public Prosecutor’s discretion has been removed or restricted in respect of Section 377A’, Wong said in a statement on Tuesday.
Debate has flared in Singapore over Section 377A which criminalizes gay sex with up to two years in prison.
Calls to both repeal and retain the law have flared since India dismantled a similar colonial-era law last month. The Supreme Court ruled Section 377 was unconstitutional and enshrined equality for LGBTI Indians.
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