Activists have called on King Charles III to apologise for Britain’s historical role in imposing anti-LGBTQ+ laws on former colonies, many of which still criminalise queer people today.
While Charles, other royals and dignitaries attended the annual Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey in London on Monday, around 50 protesters from the Peter Tatchell Foundation and partner groups demonstrated outside.
Protest Highlights Colonial Legacy of Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws
The demonstrators called on the monarch to apologise while holding placards condemning “seven decades of anti-LGBT persecution” in the Commonwealth.
The Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of 56 countries, most of which are former British colonies.
The protesters included individuals from Uganda, Bangladesh and other Commonwealth nations. They highlighted that 29 Commonwealth countries continue to criminalise same-sex relationships.
Many of these countries retained Britain’s colonial-era penal codes after gaining independence. Six nations still impose maximum sentences of life imprisonment for same-sex intimacy.
Peter Tatchell Urges Royal Apology
The activists also released a letter from veteran human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell addressed to the King.
In it, Tatchell urged Charles to acknowledge that Britain imposed these laws and to offer “an expression of regret for the harm caused” as a way to “demonstrate moral leadership.”
Tatchell noted that “An apology would signal that criminalisation was not an indigenous moral inheritance but a colonial imposition — and that equality for LGBTs is consistent with the Commonwealth Charter’s professed human rights value.”
He added that “Such a statement would not dictate policy to sovereign states, but it could help create an atmosphere conducive for decriminalisation.”
Rights Groups Warn of Growing Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws
In a separate statement ahead of Commonwealth Day, the Human Dignity Trust also condemned the continued criminalisation of LGBTQ+ people in Commonwealth nations.
The organisation noted that, in addition to the anti-LGBTQ+ laws inherited from the British Empire, some Commonwealth countries — including Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda — have in recent years expanded or are considering expanding anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.
“Over half of Commonwealth member states criminalise consensual same-sex intimacy,” said Téa Braun, Chief Executive of the Human Dignity Trust. “Commonwealth governments need to accelerate action to eradicate these laws, which expose LGBT people to violence, stigma and discrimination, and restrict their access to public health.”
Globally, 65 countries still criminalise LGBTQ+ people.
