Asia’s Views on LGBT Rights
Emily Laur and Connie Zheng
Asia is typically thought of as more conservative toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) issues. Although homosexuality is legal and not punishable by law in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan (it remains illegal in India), support for legal rights and protections for those a part of the LGBT community is another battle entirely. While the right to change gender is legal in the countries above, including India, other LGBT rights such as same-sex marriage, same-sex adoption, employment discrimination, housing discrimination, and discrimination in general are largely either illegal, unrecognized, or unprotected according to EqualDex.com.
Despite undertones of homosexuality having been incorporated into popular culture, most recognizably in Japan though publications of same-sex relationships and through Japanese Dramas, written laws protecting LGBT rights have not been formally brought forth. A positive attitude toward same-sex marriage by an estimated 53% of the Japanese public suggests the LGBT movement in Japan has gained traction and will continue to push for amendments to legislation. South Korea with its 39% positive opinion, has begun to introduce the idea of same-sex relationships into the mainstream media by playing with the idea of cross-dressing in Korean Dramas. This type of relationship is seen in Coffee Prince (2007) in which the main male role begins to question his own sexual orientation as he develops feelings for woman he perceives to be a man. Another notable appearance was made through the music industry in 2013 with K.Will’s music video “Please Don’t” which featured an unrequited love between two male friends.
In contrast, Taiwan is recognized as one of the most progressive Asian countries in terms of LGBT rights. Announcements by the Taiwanese government back in July 2015 established Taiwan as one of the first Asian countries to put forth same-sex partnership legislation. The marriage equality bill supported legalizing same-sex marriage and allowed married gay couples the right to adopt children. Currently, same sex-marriage continues to go unrecognized from a legal standpoint, however, the right to same-sex adoption is now legal. In addition to adoption rights, Taiwan also allows homosexuals to serve openly in the military and provides more stable protections for the LGBT community under law such as making LGBT discrimination illegal in some contexts and supporting nondiscrimination in employment (for sexual orientation only).
However, not all Asian countries are as progressive as Taiwan. There are many Southeast Asian countries (India, Singapore, Brunei, Myanmar) where identifying as LGBT is illegal and punishable by law or even death. Additionally while homosexuality is not illegal in some Asian countries (Philippines and Thailand) these countries do not necessarily provide protection for the LGBT community against hate crimes or open discrimination. Though the transition in public opinion seems slow or even backward, efforts to introduce same-sex relationships as a social norm in some Southeast Asian countries suggest that support for LGBT rights may become a highly debated topic in the future.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lgbt-in-southeast-asia_55e406e1e4b0c818f6185151 http://equaldex.com/region/india
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