Gay Guide South Africa

Homosexuality in itself is not covered specifically in the law, but same-sex intercourse with a man under 19 can be punishable by imprisonment of up to six years and and fined with up to 12,000 rand. In November 2006, Parliament passed a law on registered partnerships. It was introduced in response to a Constitutional Court ruling ordering the representatives of the people to change the definition of marriage from "relationship between man and woman" to "relationship between two persons". This made South Africa the fifth country in the world and the first in Africa to open marriage. The fundamental rights guaranteed in the South African constitution also prohibit in principle any discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender or marital status. Especially far from the cities homosexuality is still considered taboo in public opinion. Safer sex is even more important in South Africa than elsewhere, as the country has the highest rate of HIV infections in the world with 5 million people carrying the virus. South Africa also has continuous problems curtailing violence against homosexuals.