A Kenyan appeals court on Thursday
banned the use of forced anal exams to test whether two men had gay
sex.
Gay sex is a crime in Kenya and
violators face up to 14 years in prison.
The case involves two men accused of
being gay in 2015. The men were subjected to forced anal exams and
HIV tests to determine their sexuality.
Judge Alnashir Visram called the tests
a violation of human rights.
The men were represented by the
National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, which argued that
anal exams amount to torture, the
AP reported.
“The ruling is a tremendous step not
only in upholding the dignity of homosexuals who'd been subjected to
the indignities of anal examinations but also to the rule of law in
Kenya,” said the group's executive director, Eric Gitari.
According to Human Rights Watch, at
least eight countries have used such exams since 2010, including
Cameroon, Egypt, Lebanon, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Zambia and
Kenya.