Kenya rules rectal tests on 'gay suspects' legal

A Kenyan court on Thursday threw out a bid to outlaw rectal examinations on people suspected to be gay, a practice condemned by rights campaigners as "abhorrent".

The case was brought by two men who challenged police use of rectal inspections after undergoing the procedure when being investigated for homosexuality, which is illegal in Kenya.

Being gay can carry a prison sentence of up to 14 years in the East African country, although prosecutions are rare.

Kenyans hold a protest against homosexuality in the capital Nairobi in July 2015 ©Simon Maina (AFP/File)

"There was no other way evidence could have been obtained to ascertain that they are gay without carrying out anal analysis," Judge Anyara Emukule said in a ruling at the High Court in the port city of Mombasa.

The men were expected to appeal the decision.

International rights group Amnesty International condemned the ruling, saying it was "shocking in its disregard for international human rights obligations".

"Forcible anal examinations of men suspected of same-sex relationships is abhorrent, and violates the prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment under international law," said the group's East Africa director Muthoni Wanyeki.

"It is also absurd as the government has no business proving or disproving consensual homosexual activity. It's a violation of the right to privacy."

Homophobia is on the rise in Africa, and taking an anti-gay position while espousing evangelical Christian values is a major vote winner in many countries on the continent.

Gay rights activists have warned of rising intolerance in Kenya, including attacks on homosexuals and alleged cases of lesbians being raped to "cure" them.