Botswana same-sex marriage case faces church and cultural opposition

Botswana church and cultural groups told a court on Tuesday that they opposed a bid by a gay couple to overturn laws that bar same-sex marriage.

Bonolo Selelo, 41, and Tsholofelo Kumile, 39, have taken Botswana's government to court. They argue that the Marriage Act is unconstitutional because it says only a "bride" and "bridegroom" can marry.

Court papers say the couple were denied permission to register their marriage last year and were advised by officials to marry in South Africa instead.

The Dingwetsi Association, a non-profit group that promotes marriage and opposes divorce, said the case was likely to have a cultural impact because Botswana's customary law recognises only marriage between a man and a woman.

A lawyer for the Evangelical Fellowship of Botswana, which includes 75 churches, said the organisation believed same-sex marriage went against the beliefs of its Christian members. The lawyer also said church ministers had a direct interest in the case because they administer marriages.

South Africa is the only country in Africa that recognises same-sex marriage. Botswana decriminalised homosexuality in 2019, when the High Court struck down laws that had made it punishable by up to seven years in jail. Homosexuality has also been decriminalised in other southern African countries, including Angola, Lesotho and Mozambique.

The report said that of Africa's 54 countries, only about 20 do not currently criminalise same-sex relations, while countries including Uganda, Senegal and Niger have recently tightened anti-LGBTQ laws.