Ratified by the Constituent Assembly on May 23, 1997
Eritrea adopted a new Constitution on 23 May 1997, which suggests that homosexuality is legal. However, the provisions of the new Constitution have not yet come into force.
As stated in paragraph 17.4 of the judgment in the British case of YF Eritrea v Secretary of State for the Home Department (2003):
“we are therefore led to conclude (although hesitantly, given the lack of sufficient objective material before us) that homosexuality is technically not legal in Eritrea but will become legal when the provisions of the Constitution of May 1997 become fully implemented”.
Homosexuality is not openly discussed in Eritrea and to a large extent the existence of sexual minorities is unknown. Little is also known about the true public opinion on homosexuality, however, the US Department of State notes that homosexual persons are severely discriminated against by society.
The state-controlled Eritrean press does not report on issues of homosexuality, but in 2005 correspondence with the United Kingdom Home Office, the Foreign and Commonwealth office reported that homosexual persons are dealt with severely in Eritrea.
LGBTI individuals who have previously come to the attention of the authorities due to their sexual orientation, may be targeted; see UK Home Office, Country of Origin Information Report -Eritrea:
“[…] homosexuality is dealt with severely in Eritrea and that anybody with a known history of this kind would find it very difficult to return and reside in the country. If the individual had previously come to the attention of the authorities in the context of his/her sexuality there could be problems in gaining entry to Eritrea and he/she would certainly be ‘ear-marked’.”
