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Bhutan does not recognise same-sex marriage or civil unions. A gender-neutral marriage bill was under discussion in the Parliament of Bhutan in 2018, [1] but has since stalled.
Bhutan decriminalised same-sex sexual relations in 2021. [2] [3] Legislation to this effect passed the Parliament of Bhutan in December 2020, and received royal assent and came into force in February 2021. [4] This was hailed as a "big stride forward" for LGBT rights in Bhutan. The Himal Southasian reported in November 2023 that "these two developments [the other being the crowning of Tashi Choden as Miss Bhutan in 2022] have encouraged [LGBT] Bhutanese, making them feel seen, recognised and included in a country where traditional values had earlier rendered them largely invisible. The community now hopes to capitalise on the momentum of the last few years to campaign for marriage equality, legal gender recognition and other crucial protections." [5] [6] Activists had hoped that Supriyo v. Union of India , a court case seeking to legalise same-sex marriage in India at the Indian Supreme Court, would "bring a positive outcome that would also nudge Bhutan in the right direction." However, the court dismissed the case as a matter for the Parliament to decide. [7] Nevertheless, activists hope that "formal dialogue among community bodies and policymakers [...] will help bring clarity on issues like marriage equality." [5]
Bhutanese laws do not provide for same-sex marriages or other form of relationship recognition such as civil unions or domestic partnerships. The Marriage Act of Bhutan, 1980 (Dzongkha : གཉེན་འབྲེལ་གྱི་ཁྲིམས་ཡིག་ ༡༩༨༠, [8] [9] gnyen 'brel gyi khrims yig 1980) [lower-alpha 1] states that "a person has the right to marry any other person, irrespective of status, caste, wealth or appearance, provided the persons contracting the marriage thereof have expressly consented to their marriage." However, the Act generally refers to married spouses as "man and wife". It states that to receive a marriage license the couple "shall have to present before the Court as sureties a male person for the bridegroom and a female person for the bridge". If no provisions are contravened, then the couple "shall be recognised as a man and wife". [8] The Constitution of Bhutan does not explicitly address marriage or same-sex marriage, but states that "the State shall endeavour to promote those conditions that are conducive to co-operation in community life and the integrity of the extended family structure." [10]
A marriage bill with gender-neutral language was discussed during the 2018 summer parliamentary session, [1] but was deferred due to the 2018 parliamentary election. A progressive government led by Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa was elected in that election, and LGBT activists expressed hope that conversation on the bill would be revived. However, no discussion on the bill took place before the 2023–24 election. [1] Due to their inability to marry under Bhutanese law, same-sex couples do not enjoy the rights, benefits, obligations and responsibilities of marriage, notably they are not permitted to adopt, to inherit or to enjoy marital tax benefits.
When asked by a reporter in September 2022 if repealing the articles that criminalised same-sex sexual relations would be "only the first step", Prime Minister Lotay Tshering responded that "now, everything will be easier.", including same-sex marriage. [11] MP Dorji Khandu was also vocal in support of the legalization of same-sex marriage during discussions on the bill decriminalizing homosexuality. [12]
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) movements are social movements that advocate for LGBTQ people in society. Although there is not a primary or an overarching central organization that represents all LGBTQ people and their interests, numerous LGBT rights organizations are active worldwide. The first organization to promote LGBT rights was the Scientific-Humanitarian Committee, founded in 1897 in Berlin.
The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Singapore have evolved over the decades. Same-sex sexual activity is legal for both males and females; for men it was officially legalised in 2022 after being de facto decriminalised since 2007, and for women it was always legal. Prior to 2022, same-sex sexual activity between males was de jure illegal under the British colonial-era Section 377A of the Penal Code. The law had been de facto unenforced for decades. In February 2022, the Court of Appeal in the Supreme Court reaffirmed that 377A cannot be used to prosecute men for having sex with other men, and that it is "unenforceable in its entirety". Transgender rights in the country are also progressive in the region, which included Singapore being the first country in Asia to legalise sex reassignment surgery in 1973.
Homosexuality in India is socially permitted by most of the traditional native philosophies of the nation, and legal rights continue to be advanced in mainstream politics and regional politics. Homosexual cohabitation is also legally permitted and comes with some legal protections and rights.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Cyprus have evolved in recent years, but LGBT people still face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female expressions of same-sex sexual activity were decriminalised in 1998, and civil unions which grant several of the rights and benefits of marriage have been legal since December 2015. Conversion therapy was banned in Cyprus in May 2023. However, adoption rights in Cyprus are reserved for heterosexual couples only.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Malta rank among the highest in the world. Throughout the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the rights of the LGBT community received more awareness and same-sex sexual activity was legalized on 29 January 1973. The prohibition was already dormant by the 1890s.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Kazakhstan face significant challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female kinds of same-sex sexual activity are legal in Kazakhstan, but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex married couples.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in the British Crown dependency of the Isle of Man have evolved substantially since the early 2000s. Private and consensual acts of male homosexuality on the island were decriminalised in 1992. LGBT rights have been extended and recognised in law since then, such as an equal age of consent (2006), employment protection from discrimination (2006), gender identity recognition (2009), the right to enter into a civil partnership (2011), the right to adopt children (2011) and the right to enter into a civil marriage (2016).
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in India face legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT people. There are no legal restrictions against gay sex or gay expression within India. Same-sex couples have some limited cohabitation rights, colloquially known as live-in relationships. However, India does not currently provide for common law marriages, same-sex marriage, civil unions, guardianship or issue partnership certificates.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Sri Lanka face significant challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Bhutan face legal challenges that are not faced by non-LGBT people. Bhutan does not provide any anti-discrimination laws for LGBT people, and same-sex unions are not recognised. However, same-sex sexual activity was decriminalised in Bhutan on 17 February 2021.
Laws governing lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights are complex in Asia, and acceptance of LGBT persons is generally low. Same-sex sexual activity is outlawed in at least twenty Asian countries. In Afghanistan, Brunei, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, homosexual activity results in death penalty. In addition, LGBT people also face extrajudicial executions from non-state actors such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. While egalitarian relationships have become more frequent in recent years, they remain rare.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Africa are generally poor in comparison to the Americas, Western Europe and Oceania.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Scotland are generally in line with the rest of the United Kingdom, which have evolved extensively over time and are now regarded as some of the most progressive in Europe. In both 2015 and 2016, Scotland was recognised as the "best country in Europe for LGBTI legal equality".
LGBT conservatism refers to LGBT individuals with conservative political views. It is an umbrella term used for what is bifurcated into two specific sub-categories, each with its own term and meaning. The first sub-categorical term, Pre-Stonewall LGBT Conservatism, refers to LGBT individuals embracing and promoting the ideology of a traditional conservatism in either a general or specifically-LGBT social context or environment. The second sub-categorical term, Post-Stonewall LGBT Conservatism, refers to self-affirming LGBT persons with fiscally, culturally, and politically conservative views. These post-Stonewall conservatives' social views, though generally conservative too, at the same time reflect a self-determination-stemmed and more recent in socio-historical terms "gay-affirmation" on issues like marriage equality for same-sex couples, gay family recognition, civic equality generally for LGBT people in society, and also a positive role for (gay-affirming) religion in LGBT life. There is not complete unanimity of opinion among them on all issues, however, especially those regarding the dynamics and politics of the closet and "identity management," and various legal and political issues The first term can include LGBT people who are opposed to same-sex marriage or other LGBTQ rights while the second term, contrastingly, usually refers to self-affirming gay people who unequivocally favor marriage as a legal institution for both heterosexuals and gays and who simultaneously prefer economic and political conservatism more generally. The number of self-affirming LGBT advocates for conservative ideas and policies became more apparent only after the advent of the modern LGBT civil rights movement in the 1970s even as many gay conservatives, labeled as "self-hating" at the time, did remain closeted in areas where anti-gay socially conservative politicians then led organized opposition to LGBT rights. The Realpolitik and ideology situations for LGBT conservatives today vary by their own self-definition, developments within larger conservatism, and each country's sociopolitical, cultural, and legal LGBT rights landscape.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people living in Nauru may face legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity has been legal since May 2016, but there are no legal recognition of same-sex unions, or protections against discrimination in the workplace or the provision of goods and services.
Sexual minorities in Sri Lanka have been counted in recent times as consisting of as little as 0.035% of the population to as high as 19.6%. It is likely that there are around 1,100,000 according to current mapping conventions.
Homosexuality in Sri Lanka has been documented since ancient times. Since the 17th century, homosexual intercourse has de jure prohibited through the Penal Code first implemented under the colonialism, but human rights organizations write that arrests are rare and prosecutions only relate to non-consensual sex and prostitution.
This is a list of notable events in LGBT rights that took place in the 2010s.
This is a list of notable events in the history of LGBT rights taking place in the year 2023.
Queer radicalism can be defined as actions taken by queer groups which contribute to a change in laws and/or social norms. The key difference between queer radicalism and queer activism is that radicalism is often disruptive and commonly involves illegal action. Due to the nature of LGBTQ+ laws around the world, almost all queer activism that took place before the decriminalization of gay marriage can be considered radical action. The history of queer radicalism can be expressed through the many organizations and protests that contributed to a common cause of improving the rights and social acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community.
Status of same-sex unions around the world | ||
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| Americas | ||
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| Europe |
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| Oceania |
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| Antarctica |
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