Thailand mulls lifting ban on gay marriage | Asian Correspondent

Thailand mulls lifting ban on gay marriage | Asian Correspondent
Casey Hynes, Aug 02, 2013 

Gay rights and the legalization of same-sex marriage has been a major story around the world this summer, particularly with the fall of the United States’ Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which for years prevented same-sex couples from receiving federal recognition.
Now it appears that Thailand might also take steps toward equality gay couples by becoming the first Southeast Asian nation to allow same-sex marriage. A draft of a new law that will be submitted to parliament would give same-sex couples in Thailand the right to legally marry, according to InterPress Service News Agency (IPS).

This effort toward marriage equality is being led by politician Wiratana Kalayasiri, who also chairs the Legal Justice Human Rights Committee.

IPS quotes Kalayasiri as saying, “At first, there was a negative impression and people were wondering why I was doing this but as this process went on people started to understand that this is a human right of the Thai people, guaranteed under the constitution. Since then minds have changed.”

Many have pointed to the 2012 case in which a couple who had been together for 20 years tried to marry legally, and were denied by authorities in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai. That couple insisted that they were guaranteed equal rights under the constitution and brought their case to the Parliamentary Human Rights Commission, the Administrative Court and the National Human Rights Commission.

Kalayasiri described the support he has already seen for the proposed law.

“We have held five hearings on the bill at several universities throughout Thailand and in parliament as well. A survey of 200-300 people showed that 78 percent are in favour of allowing same-sex marriage and 10.3 percent are against it,” he said.

“I was particularly surprised when we went to Songkhla [a city of roughly 75,000 people] for a public meeting and 87 percent of Muslims in attendance were in favour [of gay marriage].”

The Asian Diplomat noted that while youth in Thailand are generally accepting of LGBT individuals and gay couples, older generations are more rigidly opposed – and it’s this demographic that does the decision-making in parliament. The situation is not unique to Thailand, but staunch anti-gay marriage sentimentality or discrimination against LGBT people seems strange in a country where “ladyboys” are such a prominent part of the culture.

But even they are discriminated against, as transgendered people cannot change their genders or names on major forms of identification, an issue that IPS says leads to harassment and a host of problems in instances such as border crossings.

In addition to the simple fact that all people should be able to marry whomever they choose, many activists in the gay rights fight acknowledge that the legal issues and protections are vital components as well.

LGBT activist Anjana Suvarnananda was quoted as saying, “If there is a severe accident or health issue, like if my partner becomes ill, then in the eyes of the law I am no one other than just a friend. This forces us [in the LGBT community] to struggle by ourselves. We want more security.”

IPS noted that the passage of a this type of law could have far-reaching effects when it comes to public health as well. The news service stated that:

Thailand has the highest adult HIV rate in Southeast Asia, with nearly 520,000 people between the ages of 15 and 49 living with HIV/AIDS; a 2010 survey in Bangkok found that 31 percent of gay men and transgendered people are HIV-positive.

In a society that was more accepting of gay and transgender people and relationships, there might be more incentive to get tested for HIV/AIDS and other medical conditions, thereby reducing the infection rate over the long-term.

Thailand is a major player in Southeast Asia, enmeshed in the region’s economic and political future. If Thailand were to make same-sex marriage legal, it could signal to other countries that this is a right that should be granted to citizens and promote greater tolerance and understanding there as well.

Change will not happen in Thailand overnight, but hopefully with continuing pressure from activists and from the public, the government will let people marry whomever they want, and take on names they have chosen for themselves.