Namibia’s government has told the United Nations Human Rights Council that any moves to expand LGBTIQ+ rights in the country must be weighed against the moral beliefs, cultural context, and social convictions of Namibian society.
On Monday, a Namibian delegation led by Minister of Justice and Labour Relations Fillemon Wise Immanuel appeared before the UNHRC in Geneva as part of the country’s Universal Periodic Review. The UPR assesses the human rights records of UN member states every four and a half years.
During the session, several countries raised concerns about gaps in Namibia’s protections for LGBTQ+ people and urged the government to take stronger action against discrimination and violence.
Calls for stronger protections
Countries including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Uruguay called on Namibia to adopt laws, policies, and measures to better protect LGBTQ+ people.
Their recommendations included reforms to employment, domestic violence, rape, marriage, civil registration, and identification laws to make them more inclusive.
Australia specifically urged Namibia to “implement the 2024 High Court decision overturning the criminalisation of same-sex relations.”
In that landmark ruling, Namibia’s High Court found that criminalising homosexuality is unconstitutional and invalid. However, the government has refused to accept the judgment and has appealed the decision.
Government response focuses on same-sex marriage
Responding to the recommendations, Minister Immanuel appeared uneasy when addressing LGBTQ+ issues and did not consistently use the correct terminology.
He did not directly address calls to decriminalise same-sex relations or introduce anti-discrimination protections. Instead, he focused heavily on same-sex marriage, even though it was not the central issue raised in many of the recommendations.
Immanuel told delegates that same-sex marriage remains “a hot debate back home”.
He said that while some parts of Namibian society support marriage equality, “other members of society believe otherwise, arguing strongly that it’s an issue that must be measured against the moral conviction of the society, against the cultural context of the society, and against the societal belief that has guided Namibia over a period of time.”
“For those reasons alone, the position of government is that we shouldn’t settle this specific question in a rush, but there must be thorough consultation to make sure that eventually it leaves the Namibian nation standing.”
Immanuel asked those with an interest in Namibia’s domestic affairs to respect the need for “thorough and extensive consultation insofar as the issue of the same sex marriage or the the [LGBTQ+] issue is concerned.”
Minister calls same-sex marriage “the elephant in the room”
After a second round of recommendations, Immanuel again returned to same-sex marriage, describing it as the “elephant in the room that we must address, because it keeps coming up…”
He clarified that a 2023 Supreme Court ruling, which required Namibia to recognise same-sex marriages performed in countries where they are legal, did not legalise same-sex marriage within Namibia itself.
However, Immanuel did not mention that the government enacted legislation in 2025, criticised by some as undermining the rule of law, to nullify the Supreme Court decision and explicitly ban any form of marriage equality in the country.
The minister went on to argue that “we all know that there is no universally recognised fundamental right to same sex marriage…. Even in the West, the international human rights instruments, including those that are governed by the UN, none of them has explicitly guarantee the right to same sex marriage.”
He also claimed that universally recognised rights such as equality, dignity, and non-discrimination are “subject to interpretation” and depend on each country’s constitutional framework and judicial guidance.
Government urges gradual reform
In his closing remarks, Immanuel said Namibia should be allowed to move “gradually” on LGBTQ+ rights.
He said that if the country chooses to move “in a particular direction”, it must do so through consultation, and that reform may need to be delayed in order to balance competing interests.
Despite the 2024 High Court ruling, laws criminalising consensual “sodomy” between men remain on Namibia’s statute books while the government’s appeal continues.
Activists have documented at least 64 arrests under these laws between 2003 and 2019, although authorities did not ultimately prosecute those cases.
The government’s response at the UNHRC has renewed concern among LGBTQ+ advocates, who argue that delaying reform leaves queer Namibians vulnerable to discrimination, criminalisation, and violence.
