377A in the spotlight again

Declaring the issue to be "of real public interest", the Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court decision and allowed an application to proceed to challenge the constitutionality of Section 377A of the Penal Code which criminalises sex between men. SMU Assistant Professor Jack Lee said: "This will no doubt be seen as a significant step by the applicant and those seeking to have Section 377A invalidated as it's the first time the Singapore courts will have to decide this issue. However, we'll have to wait and see what the courts think of the substantive arguments in the case." SMU Assistant Professor Eugene Tan pointed out: "The non-legal question is whether the forthcoming litigation on Section 377A will galvanise the various stakeholders…to become engaged in the legal dispute."