Thirty-one of the 32 defendants in a criminal case in Louga, Senegal, appeared at a special hearing on 12 November. The court postponed the case until 14 December, the Senegalese Press Agency reported. One defendant and some lawyers were absent.

Both sides asked for more time. The prosecutor proposed 28 December so the absent defendant and all the lawyers could attend. Defence lawyers said they had been unable to see the case file and wanted the hearing sooner. One proposed 26 November.

The case began in April and includes an offence under Article 319 of Senegal’s penal code. The law makes sexual acts between people of the same sex a crime. A March amendment increased the prison term for those acts to five to ten years.

The 12 November hearing followed an earlier postponement on 28 October. The court has yet to hear the case on its merits.