UPDATE 2-Nigerian judge throws out case against 47 men facing homosexuality charge

(Adds quotes, details)
By Alexis Akwagyiram
LAGOS, Oct 27 (Reuters) - A judge in a Nigerian court on
Tuesday threw out a case against 47 men charged with public
displays of affection with members of same sex, ending what had
widely been seen as a test of the country's laws banning
homosexual relationships.
The Nigerian law banning gay marriage, punishable by up to
14 years in prison, and same-sex "amorous relationships",
prompted an international outcry when it came into force under
former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2014.
The men were arrested in a police raid on a Lagos hotel in
the city's Egbeda district in 2018. Police said the men were
being initiated into a gay club, but the defendants said they
were attending a birthday party.
Prosecution and defence lawyers in the case had told Reuters
nobody had yet been convicted under the law, which led to the
case of the men being widely seen as a test case that could help
to establish the burden of proof.
Prosecutors failed to attend Tuesday's hearing at the
federal high court in Lagos, having previously failed to present
some of their witnesses in a case that had been adjourned on
several occasions.
Justice Rilwan Aikawa struck out the case and said he had
done so due to the "lack of diligent prosecution".
The specific charge the men faced, relating to public
displays of affection, carries a 10-year prison sentence.
Outside the court, many of the men smiled and cheered,
including dancer James Brown who, smiling, said: "I am free. It
means a lot of good things."
Under Nigerian law, defendants in a case that is struck out
can be re-arrested and arraigned again on the same charge,
whereas that is not possible in cases that have been dismissed.
Taxi driver Onyeka Oguaghamba, a father-of-four who said he
merely drove people to the party, said he was happy the case had
been struck out but disappointed that it was not dismissed
entirely.
"I am not happy, because I'm looking for the matter to end
in a way that people will see me and believe what I have been
saying from the beginning," he said, adding that the decision
meant he could be charged again.
Oguaghamba and others previously told Reuters they had been
stigmatized as a result of the raid and a televised news
conference held by police in which they were identified the day
after their arrest. Chris Agiriga, another of the men, said the striking out of
the case would not help him to be reconciled with his family who
had rejected him over the matter.
"Since the past two years, this has caused a lot of damage
in my life," he said.
Emmanuel Sadi, a programme officer with rights group the
Initiative for Equal Rights (TIERS), said the outcome of the
case raised questions about the law used to charge the men.
"You can't even build a case around it," he said. "I hope
they (the government) realise how redundant it is as a law, and
they are open to removing or repealing it," he said.
Homosexuality is outlawed in many socially conservative
African societies where some religious groups brand it a
corrupting Western import. Gay sex is a crime in countries
across the continent, with punishments ranging from imprisonment
to death.