Gay rights activists are celebrating after a Kenyan court ruled that subjecting suspected gay men to forced anal testing was illegal. The landmark case marked a significant shift in sexual minority rights in the country, which activists hope will eventually lead to decriminalizing homosexuality in Kenya and other countries in the region.

This case surrounds the 2015 arrests of two suspected gay men in Kenya’s coastal town of Ukunda. The men claim they were subjected to forced anal exams, which officials said were used to determine if the men were engaging in homosexual activity. Their legal team argued the procedure was akin to torture. The court agreed, turning over a previous ruling and deciding such state-led examinations were unconstitutional and violated human rights.

The win is part of an ongoing fight to protect the rights of sexual minorities in Kenya, which activists hope will lead to repealing the colonial-era law that criminalizes homosexuality in the East African country.

Kenya is one of at least 34 African countries where same-sex sexual acts are illegal and punishable by 14 years in prison according to its Penal Code. There were nearly 600 cases of “unnatural offenses” logged by police between 2010 and 2014 according to the United States Human Rights Country Report. Eight men were prosecuted on indecency charges in that time.

But Kenya is not alone in subjecting suspected gay men to forced anal exams. Cameroon, Egypt, Uganda and Zambia also claim the procedure is a valid method for determining if a man has participated in anal sex.

'No medical basis'

The medical community has long condemned the outdated procedure, which usually involves a medical professional inserting their fingers, an instrument or tubes into the man’s rectum to visually examine the area for signs he has engaged in anal sex. They are oftentimes forced to bend over or lift their legs into a birthing position before the examination. Those inspected are almost exclusively male. Read more via PRI