Asserting one’s sexual orientation and living freely is not a crime and should definitely not be part of any criminal code. And yet, 12 countries across the world still include the possibility of punishing homosexuality by death in their legal systems. Although it is almost impossible to keep a record of the number of executions carried out on the basis of this charge, which is very difficult to demonstrate in practice, one thing is certain: the execution of homosexuals, particularly in Iran, has been camouflaged by other offences such as drug trafficking.
Through its campaign "The Death Penalty is Homophobic", ECPM denounces sexual discrimination and exhorts countries which apply the death penalty to decriminalise it. ECPM also denounces countries which have openly homophobic legislation such as Uganda which, on a number of occasions, has sought to reintroduce the death penalty for "aggravated homosexuality". ECPM calls on all countries to respect the sexual freedom of all.
