Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Same-sex sexual activity is prohibited under the Criminal Code 1988, which criminalises acts of ‘buggery’ and ‘gross indecency’. These provisions carry a maximum penalty of ten years’ imprisonment. Both men and women are criminalised under the law.

The law was inherited from the British during the colonial period, in which the English criminal law was imposed upon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It retained the provision upon independence and continues to criminalise same-sex sexual activity today.

There is no evidence of the law being enforced, and it appears to be largely obsolete in practice. Nevertheless, the mere existence of this provision is itself a violation of human rights and underpins further acts of discrimination (see further). There have been some reports of discrimination and violence being committed against LGBT people in recent years, including assault, verbal abuse, harassment, and familial rejection.

2024

On 16 February, a High Court judge dismissed a legal case filed in 2019, challenging sections 146 and 148 of the Criminal Code 1988, which criminalise consensual, same-sex sexual activity. In dismissing the case, the judge held that the claimants did not have standing to bring many aspects of the constitutional challenge because they no longer live in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, or had failed to provide sufficient evidence of historic rights violations. The judge found that the laws had interfered with the Claimants’ right to freedom of expression, but concluded this interference was justified on the grounds of public health and morality. The decision was delivered orally in court and a written judgment containing more detailed legal and factual reasons for the dismissal was issued on 20 February.

2019

On 26 July, a case was filed  by two gay men (Javin Johnson and Sean Macleish) challenging the constitutionality of sections 146 and 148 of the Criminal Code 1988, which criminalises same-sex sexual activity.

The Christian Coalition organised a  rally in early November in opposition, among other things, to the legal challenge to the ‘buggery’ and ‘gross indecency’ laws. Mandella Peters, a lawyer and representative of the Christian Coalition, addressed the rally and described the challenge as an assault on religious freedoms. On 20 November, the High Court determined that 10 churches (known collectively as the ‘Christian Coalition’) would be permitted to join the litigation as interested parties, albeit limited to filing two affidavits.

2014

In June, the country noted it could not join the consensus on the approval of an Organization of American States (OAS) resolution on sexual orientation, finding that: “Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is of the view that the term ‘gender expression’ is one that is not thoroughly defined internationally or that has international acceptance.”

2022

The US Department of State country report on Human Rights Practices  noted, like preceding reports, that the laws criminalising same-sex sexual activity are rarely enforced.

2023

In November, during the Third Cycle of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines’ Universal Periodic Review, the United Nations subregional team noted reports that LGBT people faced stigma and discrimination, including challenges in accessing basic health-care and social services, as well as finding jobs.

In July, a report from Human Rights Watch found that LGBT people in St Vincent and the Grenadines still face bias-motivated violence and discrimination in their daily life. The report exposes physical and verbal assaults, family violence, homelessness, workplace harassment, bullying, and sexual violence that LGBT individuals face under the shadow of discriminatory laws. The report illustrates that criminalisation of same-sex sexual activity gives tacit state sanction to the discrimination and violence that LGBT people experience in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

2022

The US Department of State country report on Human Rights Practices found that there were no reports of violence against LGBT people. However, local civil society organisations reported that members of the LGBT community continued to face abuse, discrimination, and verbal harassment.

2020

The US Department of State country report on Human Rights Practices noted that since the filing of the challenge to the criminalisation of same-sex sexual activity (see above), local civil society organisations reported an increase in physical and verbal attacks on LGBT people. This included at least four unprovoked attacks, including a stabbing, following an anti-LGBT protest.

2018

The US Department of State country report on Human Rights Practices  that anecdotal evidence suggested there was societal discrimination against LGBT people, but that local observers believed such attitudes of intolerance were slowly improving. Nevertheless, it reported two acts of violence against LGBT people due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. The first involved two “men dressed in female clothing” being chased and beaten by a crowd, none of whom were arrested. The second involved a murder during a same-sex encounter, to which the suspect admitted.

2016 

The Human Rights Watch report, I Have to Leave to Be Me, documented cases of discrimination and violence against LGBT people in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. This included physical attacks, verbal abuse and harassment, familial rejection, and discrimination in employment.

2013

The report of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada contains statements made by various NGOs in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The Chairman of Vincy CHAP, an NGO providing HIV education and testing in the country, stated that incidents of violence due to homosexuality since 2010 are relatively low, mainly result in minor injuries, and tend to be related to personal disputes rather than random violence. The CariFLAGS Eastern Caribbean coordinator stated that there have been cases of LGBT people being attacked and threatened in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the level of violence against the community is not known due to a fear of reporting abuses against them to the police.