Privy Council Rules In Favour Of Jason Jones In Same-Sex Relations Case
The Privy Council has unanimously ruled that Trinidad and Tobago’s laws criminalising private, consensual sexual relations between adults of the same sex are unconstitutional.
The decision follows a longstanding legal challenge brought by Jason Jones, who argued that provisions of the Sexual Offences Act violated his fundamental rights under the Constitution.
In a unanimous decision delivered on Tuesday, all five judges of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council allowed Jones’s appeal, overturning the Court of Appeal’s decision and restoring the central findings of High Court Judge Justice Devindra Rampersad.
The case challenged sections 13 and 16 of the Sexual Offences Act, which criminalise buggery and acts of serious indecency.
The Privy Council found that the provisions infringed Mr Jones’s constitutional rights, particularly his right to respect for private and family life.
The Board ruled that the legislation must be interpreted in accordance with the Constitution, so that it does not criminalise private, consensual sexual relations between adults of the same sex.
The Attorney General’s cross-appeal was also dismissed.
The State had argued that the provisions were protected by the Constitution’s savings clause, which preserves certain laws that existed before the Constitution came into effect. It also argued that the legislation was passed with the required special parliamentary majority.
However, the Privy Council rejected those arguments, finding that the 1986 legislation constituted new law and that its restrictions were not reasonably justifiable in a society that properly respects individual rights and freedoms.
Mr Jones was represented at the Privy Council by Anand Ramlogan SC of Freedom Law Chambers, Amanda Clift-Matthews, Peter Laverack, Ganesh Saroop and Kate Temple-Mabe, with Travers Smith LLP acting as instructing solicitors.
Freedom Law Chambers welcomed the decision, saying it is a significant victory for gay rights, equal dignity and respect for private and family life. While the Privy Council has made its findings on the constitutional infringement, it has invited further submissions from the parties before issuing its final remedial order.
Freedom Law Chambers also congratulated Mr Jones on his courage and perseverance, saying his determination, in the face of harassment, violence and fear of arrest, had secured a decision affirming the constitutional protection of an intimate and fundamental part of human life.
The firm also noted that the Board referred to decisions from Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, St Christopher and Nevis, Barbados, Dominica and Saint Lucia as demonstrating a clear regional trend towards acceptance and non-criminalisation.
« Its reasoning will make an important contribution to the development of human-rights protection across the Caribbean, subject to each jurisdiction’s Constitution and laws. »
Freedom Law Chambers said Trinidad and Tobago’s national anthem promises that « every creed and race find an equal place », adding that this principle of belonging must embrace every member of the national community, as « every person deserves to live with equal dignity and respect ».
