Botswana High Court Concludes Hearings on Same-Sex Marriage Legalisation
On 22 and 23 October 2026, a five-judge panel of the Botswana High Court in the capital, Gaborone, held hearings in a landmark case regarding the legalisation of same-sex marriage. The lawsuit was brought by two women, Bonolo Selelo and Tsholofelo Kumile, who were previously denied the registration of their union.
In May 2025, Botswana’s Department of Civil and Registration refused to register Selelo and Kumile’s marriage, citing that the law only provides for a union between a man and a woman. The couple subsequently took the matter to court. According to MambaOnline, the LGBTQ+ rights organisation LEGABIBO (Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals of Botswana) joined their lawsuit as an interested party.
The plaintiffs argue that the state’s refusal to recognise their relationship violates their constitutional rights to dignity, equality, privacy, as well as freedom of expression and association. According to LEGABIBO representatives, the inability to marry denies same-sex couples practical legal protection in matters such as property inheritance, medical decision-making, taxation, and social security.
The state, along with Christian organisations supporting it, insists that marriage is intended for procreation and that same-sex unions contradict Botswana’s culture and traditions. The respondents also argued that the decision to legalise such marriages should be made by parliament, not the courts.
During the hearings, both marriage equality supporters carrying rainbow flags and placards reading “Love does not harm” and opponents from Christian groups with anti-homosexuality slogans gathered outside the courthouse.
The court is expected to deliver its judgment on 2 April 2027. If the ruling is in favour of the plaintiffs, Botswana could become the second country in Africa, after South Africa, to legalise same-sex marriage.
Earlier, in April 2026, Botswana officially removed from its Penal Code colonial-era provisions that punished consensual same-sex relations. In practice, this ban had already been struck down by the courts in 2019 and 2021, but the formal change to the text of the law only occurred recently.
