(Jamaica Gleaner) Jamaica and several other Commonwealth nations that maintain anti-gay legislation could be affected by reduced financial support from Britain.
British prime minister, David Cameron has threatened to withhold British aid from governments that do not reform legislation banning homosexuality.
The BBC reports that the British prime minister raised the issue with some of the states attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Perth, Australia.
Human rights reform in the Commonwealth was one issue that leaders failed to reach an agreement on at the summit.
Mr Cameron says those receiving British aid should “adhere to proper human rights”. He later told the BBC that “British aid should have more strings attached”.
Mr Cameron’s threat applies only to one type of bilateral aid known as general budget support and would not reduce the overall amount of aid to any one country.
Ending bans on homosexuality was one of the recommendations of an internal report into the future relevance of the Commonwealth.
by Stabroek editor
Source – The Montserrat Reporter
