Former leader passed an anti-LGBT bill in 2014, but says Nigeria’s views of homosexuality are “evolving.”
Nigeria’s former President Goodluck Jonathan said on June 6 that the country might reconsider laws that ban same-sex marriage.
Jonathan served as Nigeria’s president from 2010-2015, and in 2014 passed a bill that criminalized same-sex relationships.
The bill banned same-sex marriage, gay and lesbian groups, and public displays of affections between same-sex couples. Violating the bill carried a punishment of up to 14 years in prison.
The former president said, “When it comes to equality, we must all have the same rights as Nigerian citizens.”
While the nation continues to make headlines about treatment and inequality of LGBT people, Jonathan stated that as the world continues to move towards equal rights, Nigeria needs to revisit certain legislation.
“The nation may at the appropriate time revisit the law in the light of deepening debates for all Nigerians and other citizens of the world to be treated equally and without discrimination and with the clear knowledge that the issue of sexual orientation is still evolving,” Jonathan stated.