LGBT rights in Asia

LGBT rights in Asia
Asia
Same-sex sexual activity legal?	Legal in 27 out of 48 states Legal in all 3 territories Legal in 6 out of 7 states with limted recognition
Gender identity/expression	Legal in 19 out of 48 states Legal in 1 out of 3 territories Legal in 2 out of 7 states with limited recognition
Military service	Legal in 9 out of 48 states Legal in 1 out of 3 territories Legal in 1 out of 7 states with limited recognition
Discrimination protections	Legal in 6 out of 48 states Legal in all 3 territories Legal in 2 out of 7 states with limited recognition
Family rights
Recognition of relationships	Legal in 1 out of 48 states Legal in 0 out of 3 territories Legal in 0 out of 7 states with limted recognition
Restrictions:	Same-sex marriage constitutionally banned in 1 out of 48 states
Adoption	Legal in 1 out of 48 states Legal in 0 out of 3 territories Legal in 0 out of 7 states with limited recognition

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Asia are limited in comparison to many other areas of the world. Same-sex sexual activity is outlawed in at least twenty Asian countries. While at least nine countries allow same-sex people to serve in the military, only Israel provides a wider range of LGBT rights - including same-sex relationship recognition.

In Brunei, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen homosexual activity is punished with the death penalty.^[1] The legal punishment for sodomy has varied among juristic schools: some prescribe capital punishment; while other prescribe a milder discretionary punishment such as imprisonment. In some relatively secular Muslim-majority countries such as Indonesia,^[2] Jordan and Turkey this is not the case.

As of May 2016. same-sex sexual acts are illegal in 23 countries.^[1]

Egalitarian relationships modeled on the Western pattern have become more frequent, though they remain rare. Same-sex intercourse officially carries the death penalty in several Muslim nations: Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Brunei, Iran, and Yemen.^[3][4]

Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Nepal, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and Cyprus (excluding Northern Cyprus) are the most open to the LGBT community in Asia. Japan, Israel, Taiwan and Nepal are the major players in legislation.

In a UN General Assemby declaration for LGBT rights and/or sponsored the Human Rights Council's 2011 resolution on LGBT rights, state parties were given a chance to express their support or opposition on the topic. Only Armenia, Georgia, Cyprus, Israel, South Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Nepal, Thailand, and East Timor have expressed their support. State parties who expressed opposition are Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Maldives, North Korea, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Yemen, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Syria, Afghanistan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan. Other Asian parties did not show support or opposition.

The first and only LGBT political party in the world, Ladlad, was established in the Philippines in 2003.

In 2016, during an African-led coalition to dislodge the recently established UN expert on LGBT issues, the majority of Asian nations backed to retain the role of the UN LGBT expert, with only Muslim nations, with the addition of China and Singapore, declaring their opposition.

Asia
Same-sex sexual activity legal

  Other type of partnership (or unregistered cohabitation)

  Foreign same-sex marriages recognized¹

  No recognition of same-sex couples

  Restrictions on freedom of expression

Same-sex sexual activity illegal

  Not Enforced or unclear

  Penalty

  Life in prison

  Death penalty

Legislation by country or territory

This table:

Central Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Adoption by same-sex couples	LGB allowed to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination laws concerning sexual orientation	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Kazakhstan	Legal since 1998[1]				[5]		[6]
Kyrgyzstan	Legal since 1998[1]						[6]
Tajikistan	Legal since 1998[1]						[6]
Turkmenistan	Male illegal Penalty: up to 2-year prison sentence Female always legal[1]
Uzbekistan	Male illegal Penalty: up to 3-year prison sentence Female always legal[1]

Eurasia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Adoption by same-sex couples	LGB allowed to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination laws concerning sexual orientation	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Akrotiri and Dhekelia (Overseas territory of the United Kingdom)	Legal since 2000 + UN decl. sign.[1]	Since 2005	Legal since 2014		UK responsible for defence	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[7]
Armenia	Legal since 2003 + UN decl. sign.[1]		Constitutionally banned since 2015[8][9]		/ No explicit ban. However, LGBT persons have been reportedly discharged because of their sexual orientation.[10]
Azerbaijan	Legal since 2000[1]						(Requires sterilization for change).[11]
Cyprus	Legal since 1998 + UN decl. sign.[1]	Since 2015				Bans all anti-gay discrimination[12]	Forbids discrimination based on gender identity.
Georgia	Legal since 2000 + UN decl. sign.[1]		(Constitutional ban proposed)			Bans all anti-gay discrimination[13]	(Requires sterilization for change)[11]
Russia	Male legal since 1993 Female always legal[14][1]		(Constitutional ban proposed)	LGBT individuals may adopt.			(Requires sterilization for change)[11]
Turkey	Legal since 1858[1]				(Proposed)[15]	(Proposed)[16]	(Requires sterilization for change)

Western Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Adoption by same-sex couples	LGB allowed to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination laws concerning sexual orientation	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Bahrain	Legal since 1976 (Age of consent discrepancy)[1]
Iran	Illegal Penalty: For men 74 lashes for immature men and death penalty for mature men of sound mind and is consenting. For women 50 lashes for women of mature sound mind and is consenting. Death penalty offense after fourth conviction.[1]						Legal gender recognition in Iran is legal if accompanied by a medical intervention.[17]
Iraq	Legal since 2003[18]
Israel	Legal since 1963 (de facto), 1988 (de jure)[19] + UN decl. sign.[1][20]	Unregistered cohabitation since 1994.	/ Unrecognized if performed in country, but foreign same-sex marriages are recognized.	Step-child adoption since 2005. Joint adoption since 2008.[21][22]	Since 1993	Bans some anti-gay discrimination;[23][24] Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty applies to homosexuals and bisexuals.[25]	Full recognition of gender's ID without a surgery or medical intervention;[26] equal employment opportunity law bars discrimination based on gender identity;[27][28] Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty applies to transgender individuals.[27][29]
Jordan	Legal since 1951[1]						Legal since 2014[30]
Kuwait	Male illegal Penalty: Fines or up to 6-year prison sentence Female always legal[1][31]
Lebanon	Legal since 2014[32]						Legal gender change allowed
Oman	Illegal Penalty: Fines and prison sentence up to 3 years (Only enforced when dealing with "public scandal")[1]
Qatar	Illegal Penalty: Fines, prison sentence up to 7 years.[1]
Saudi Arabia	Illegal Penalty: Prison sentences of several months to life, fines and/or whipping/flogging, castration, torture or death can be sentenced on first conviction. A second conviction merits execution.[1]
Syria	Illegal Penalty: Prison sentence up to 3 years (Law in de-facto suspended)[33][1]						Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender
United Arab Emirates	Illegal under federal law Penalty: deportation, fines or prison time Illegal in the emirate of Dubai Penalty: Up to 14 years imprisonment Illegal in the emirate of Abu Dhabi Penalty: Up to 10 years imprisonment[1]						Sex reassignment surgery for people whose gender is unclear or whose physical features do not match their physiological, biological and genetic characteristics.[34][35][36]
Yemen	Illegal Penalty: Unmarried men punished with 100 lashes of the whip or a maximum of one year of imprisonment, married men with death by stoning. Women punished up to three years of imprisonment; where the offense has been committed under duress, the punishment is up to seven years detention.[1]

Southern Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Adoption by same-sex couples	LGB allowed to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination laws concerning sexual orientation	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Afghanistan	Illegal Penalty: Long imprisonment or death penalty (No known cases of death sentences have been handed out for same-sex sexual activity after the end of Taliban rule)[1]
Bangladesh	Illegal Penalty: 10 years to life imprisonment[1]						A third option (hijra) beside male and female[37]
Bhutan	Illegal Penalty: Prison sentence up to 1 year (Not enforced)[1]
India	Illegal nationwide since 1861, was legal from 2009 to 2013 only for National Capital Territory of Delhi[38] Penalty: Up to 10 years imprisonment (sporadically enforced)[39][38][1] Supreme Court to consider legalization. [40]	No explicit recognition.[41]	No explicit recognition.[41]	Transgender individuals may adopt.	[42]		"Third gender" recognised by Supreme Court[43]
Maldives	Illegal Penalty: For men the punishment is banishment for nine months to one year or a whipping of 10 to 30 strokes. For women is house arrest for nine months to one year.[1]
Nepal	Legal since 2007 + UN decl. sign.[1]	(Proposed: By Supreme Court in 2008)	(Proposed: By Supreme Court in 2008)	Under consideration		Constitution bans all anti-gay discrimination.	Gender change is legal since 2007. Constitution bans all discrimination.[44]
Pakistan	Illegal Penalty: 2 years to life sentence[1]						Right to changer gender; transgender and intersex citizens have protection form all discrimination and harassment.[45]
Sri Lanka	Illegal Penalty: Fine and up to 10 years imprisonment (Not enforced)[1]

Eastern Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Adoption by same-sex couples	LGB allowed to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination laws concerning sexual orientation	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
China (People's Republic of)	Legal since 1997[1]						Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender, but only after sex reassignment surgery.
Hong Kong (Special administrative region of China)	Legal since 1991[1]				The People's Republic of China is in charge of Hong Kong's defence affairs. Regardless of sexual orientation, military personnel are not recruited from Hong Kong.	Government employment, goods and services only	Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender, but only after sex reassignment surgery.
Japan	Legal since 1880 + UN decl. sign.[1]	(Non-legally binding partnerships in 5 municipal jurisdictions (Shibuya, Setagaya, Iga, Takaraduka, Naha)				/ No nationwide protections, but some cities ban some anti-gay discriminations[1]	Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender, but only after sex reassignment surgery and in case that the transsexual has no child under 20 years old
Macau (Special administrative region of China)	Legal (No laws against same-sex sexual activity has ever existed in the region)[46]				The People's Republic of China is in charge of Macau's defence affairs. Regardless of sexual orientation, military personnel are not recruited from Macau.	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Mongolia	Legal since 1961 + UN decl. sign.[1]				Due to conscription.	Bans anti-gay discrimination.	Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender
North Korea	Legal (No laws against same-sex sexual activity has ever existed in the country)[1]						Unknown although there are heavily obeyed gender roles for both male and female. See Let's trim our hair in accordance with the socialist lifestyle
South Korea	Legal (No laws against same-sex sexual activity has ever existed in the country) + UN decl. sign.[1]						Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender
Taiwan (Republic of China)	Legal since 1895[47]	/ Registered partnership in Kaohsiung,[48] Taipei,[49] Taichung (2015),[50] Tainan,[51] New Taipei,[52] Taoyuan,[53] Chiayi City,[54] Changhua, [55] and Hsinchu (2016). (Proposed nationwide)	(In 2016 part of the caucus (DPP,KMT,NPP) legislative proposal, the President Tsai Ing-wen also expressed respect for the attitude)	(In 2016 part of the caucus (DPP,KMT,NPP) legislative proposal, the President Tsai Ing-wen also expressed respect for the attitude)	Due to military draft	Bans some anti-gay discrimination (in work and education)	Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender. Surgery no longer a requirement beginning in 2015[56]

Southeast Asia

LGBT rights in	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Adoption by same-sex couples	LGB allowed to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination laws concerning sexual orientation	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Brunei	Illegal Penalty: Fines and imprisonment up to 10 years or death by stoning[1]
Myanmar (Burma)	Illegal Penalty: Up to life sentence (Not enforced) [1]
Cambodia	Legal (No laws against same-sex sexual activity has ever existed in the country)[1]		Constitutional ban since 1993, though there has been at least one recorded case of a legally registered and recognized same-sex marriage.
East Timor	Legal since 1975 + UN decl. sign.[1]					Bans hate crimes based on sexual orientation
Indonesia	Legal nationwide, except; Illegal in the provinces of Aceh and South Sumatra and the city of Palembang (Applies only to Muslims)[57][58][1] (Age of consent discrepancy)				[59]
Laos	Legal (No laws against same-sex sexual activity has ever existed in the country)[1]
Malaysia	Male illegal Penalty: fines, prison sentence (2-20 years), or whippings Female always legal[1]
Philippines	Legal nationwide since 1933 [60][1][61]	(Pending)[60]	(Pending)[62]	LGBT individuals may adopt.[63]	Since 2009	[64] Cebu[65] Quezon City, Davao[66] and Albay have anti-discrimination ordinances[67] (National bill pending but still not made into law)	(Pending)[68]
Singapore	Male illegal Penalty: up to 2 years prison sentence (Not enforced since 1999) Female legal since 2007[1]				Due to conscription, but gays are not allowed to go to command school or serve in sensitive units.		Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender, but only after sex reassignment surgery.
Thailand	Legal since 1956 + UN decl. sign.[1]	(Proposed)[69]			Since 2005	Bans all anti-gay discrimination.	Transsexuals may change their legal name after having a sex change operation.[70]
Vietnam	Legal (No laws against same-sex sexual activity has ever existed in the country)[1] + UN decl. sign.[1]						Sex-change recognized for sex assignment for persons of congenital sex defects and unidentifiable sex. Gender reassignment surgery from 2017

Partially recognized or unrecognized states

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Adoption by same-sex couples	LGB allowed to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination laws concerning sexual orientation	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Abkhazia	Legal after 1991
Nagorno-Karabakh	Legal since 2000		Constitutionally banned since 2006 [71]
Northern Cyprus	Legal since 2014[72][73][1]					Bans all anti-gay discrimination[72][73]	Discrimination or hate speech banned since 2014.[72][73] Unknown if gender change is legal.
Palestinian territories	West Bank: Legal since 1951 (As part of Jordan)[1] Gaza: Male illegal Penalty: Up to 10 years imprisonment Female always legal[1]
South Ossetia	Legal after 1991

See also

• LGBT rights by country or territory
• Human rights in Asia

References

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3. MV Media (20 April 2014). "Brunei: Sultan institutes death penalty for homosexuality". Muslim Village. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
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33. Syria, Middle East
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External links