"We are excited and cautiously optimistic - but optimistic nonetheless," Lelei Cheruto from NGLHRC, one of the groups petitioning the court to decriminalise gay sex, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Under sections of Kenya's penal code, gay sex - or "carnal knowledge against the order of nature" - is punishable by up to 14 years in jail. The law against gay sex in Kenya - sections 162 and 165 - was introduced during British rule more than 120 years ago. The Kenyan government, backed by powerful Christian groups, however, is opposed to scrapping the ban on gay sex, have argued during court hearings last year that it will lead to same-sex marriage. It will reinvigorate LGBT+ rights campaigns in many countries.

Source: The Star February 20, 2019 09:45 UTC