Thailand legalises same-sex marriage

On June 18th government bigwigs, LGBT activists and stars of popular Thai television shows about gay love partied on the lawn in front of the prime minister’s offices in Bangkok. Hours earlier the Thai senate voted through a sweeping marriage-equality bill. Thailand will soon be the first South-East Asian country to legalise same-sex marriage.

The attendees, some of whom left the party in a motorcade of rainbow tuk-tuks, helped bring about comprehensive legislation. In Thailand’s civil code marriage will be described as a pact between two persons, rather than a man and a woman. Married LGBT couples will also get inheritance and adoption rights. The Thai king is expected to endorse the bill soon; it becomes law 120 days later.

LGBT couples across Asia hope the Thai bill accelerates acceptance in their own countries. Some are making strides towards pride. Australia, New Zealand, Nepal and Taiwan have legalised same-sex marriage in the past decade or so. India, Hong Kong and Singapore have repealed colonial-era laws criminalising gay sex. But regional progress is uneven and often slow.

Thailand’s bill passed for several reasons. Most were on show at the celebration. First is social acceptance, which is boosted in Thailand by activists, social-media influencers and TV dramas about gay romance dubbed “Boys’ Love”. Much of Thai society is conservative and discrimination persists. But some 60% of people support same-sex marriage, among the highest shares in Asia, according to Pew Research Centre, a pollster.

Religious tolerance helps. Buddhism, dominant in Thailand, does not prohibit same-sex relationships. In Indonesia, however, conservative Muslim groups are powerful and oppose marriage equality. In South Korea and Singapore, social conservatism is reinforced by influential evangelical Christian lobbies.

Political will was crucial. Previous Thai governments considered legalising civil partnerships rather than same-sex marriage. But the new bill, an amalgam of proposals including one each from the ruling Pheu Thai party and the liberal Move Forward Party (MFP), had strong bipartisan support. Both parties campaigned for marriage equality during last year’s election. Srettha Thavisin, who took office in September, recently became the first Thai prime minister to march at Bangkok Pride. Most Thai MPs and army-appointed senators backed the bill.

On the same day as the celebration, however, Thailand’s Constitutional Court said it would consider a case to disband the MFP over its campaign to reform the country’s lèse-majesté laws, which forbid criticism of the powerful royals. The party won last year’s election, but conservatives helped block it from taking power. Move Forward MPs have been sentenced to lengthy jail terms. The army-backed establishment appears intent on shutting down democratic representation, even as Thailand’s social liberals celebrate a big win. Tunyawat Kamolwongwat, a gay Move Forward MP, first proposed a same-sex marriage bill to Thailand’s parliament in June 2020. Four years later, his party faces dissolution. ■