Vanuatu Pride logo Photo: Facebook / VPride
Vanuatu's Ministry of Justice and Community Services will appoint a new committee this week to draft a national policy banning LGBTQIA+ advocacy and promotion in the country.
National Human Rights coordinator Albert Nalpini said this decision aligns with the Council of Ministers meeting earlier this year, which aimed to create a policy that prohibits LGBTQIA+ activities in the country.
Nalpini said the activities of the organisation V-Pride contradict the Vanuatu constitution's preambles, Christian principles, and Melanesian values.
The Vanuatu Daily Post reported attempts to obtain a comment from the director of V-Pride were unsuccessful.
According to the Vanuatu Christian Council vice chairman Pastor Thomson Aki the V-Pride movement in the country poses a threat to its Christian values.
"I thank the government for taking a stand against LGBTQ and V-Pride activities in the country," he was quoted as saying.
"The Church does not support this lifestyle, as mentioned in the Bible when God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for their wickedness."
Earlier this year, the Malvatumauri Council of Chiefs president Paul Robert Ravun said the rainbow foundation did not align with Vanuatu's laws.
He urged parliament to address the issue as the constitution states Vanuatu is a Christian country.
"Our customs are unique and must guide our law-making process, particularly on matters such as same-sex relationships, which are clearly not part of our traditional practices," he was quoted as saying by the Vanuatu Daily Post in March.
