According to the penal code of Guyana

Guyana

Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...

, "gross indecency" committed by a man upon another man, either in public or private, will be punished with imprisonment for up to 2 years. For attempted anal sex ("buggery

Buggery

The British English term buggery is very close in meaning to the term sodomy, and is often used interchangeably in law and popular speech. It may be, also, a specific common law offence, encompassing both sodomy and bestiality.-In law:...

") the punishment is 10 years, and for anal sex, imprisonment for life is possible. Guyana is the only country in South America where homosexual acts are still illegal.

In December 2000, the Guyanese Parliament

National Assembly of Guyana

The National Assembly is the parliament of Guyana. It has 65 members, 53 members elected for a five-year term by proportional representation and 12 members delegated by local government councils...

 unanimously approved an amendment to the Constitution which would (in part) prohibit discrimination for reasons of sexual orientation, but the efforts of religious leaders prior to the March 2001 elections caused President Jagdeo

Bharrat Jagdeo

Bharrat Jagdeo is a Guyanese politician who has been President of Guyana since 11 August 1999. Prior to his presidency he was Minister of Finance and became President after Janet Jagan resigned for health reasons; subsequently he won two elections, in 2001 and 2006.Jagdeo was born in Unity Village...

to deny it his assent. A new amendment containing only the sexual orientation clause was put before Parliament in 2003.