Members of the LGBTQ+ community, Thailand. Photo: Reuters
Thailand's lawmakers voted on Tuesday to approve a marriage equality bill, a move that puts the country on a clear path to becoming the first in Southeast Asia to legalize same-sex marriage.
Thailand’s Senate passed the bill by 130 votes to 4, with some abstentions, on Tuesday afternoon. It was approved by the House of Representatives in March. The legislation would become law after it is reviewed by a Senate committee and the Constitutional Court and receives royal assent from the king, a formality that is widely expected to be granted.
“After 20 years of trying to legalize this matter,” activist Plaifa Kyoka Shodladd, 18, said in the Senate chamber after the vote, “finally, love wins.”
The bill’s passage underscores Thailand’s status as a relative haven for gay couples in Asia. Only Taiwan and Nepal have legalized same-sex marriage.
Thailand’s Senate passed the bill by 130 votes to 4, with some abstentions, on Tuesday afternoon. It was approved by the House of Representatives in March. The legislation would become law after it is reviewed by a Senate committee and the Constitutional Court and receives royal assent from the king, a formality that is widely expected to be granted.
“After 20 years of trying to legalize this matter,” activist Plaifa Kyoka Shodladd, 18, said in the Senate chamber after the vote, “finally, love wins.”
The bill’s passage underscores Thailand’s status as a relative haven for gay couples in Asia. Only Taiwan and Nepal have legalized same-sex marriage.
While India came close to doing so last year, the Supreme Court deferred the decision to Parliament. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken strongly against legalizing gay marriage.
In some Asian countries, gay sex is a criminal offence. Indonesia, where gay marriage is illegal, made extramarital sex illegal in 2022. In 2019, Brunei made gay sex punishable with death by stoning. It later said it would not carry out executions after widespread international protest.
Thailand’s bill calls marriage a partnership between two people aged 18 and above, without specifying their gender. It also gives L.G.B.T.Q. couples have equal rights to adopt children, claim tax allowances, inherit property and give consent for medical treatment when their partners are incapacitated.
The bill has been contentious since its first version was introduced over 20 years ago. While Thailand is one of the most open places in the world for gay couples, it is socially conservative in other ways. In February, lawmakers dismissed a proposal to let people change genders on official documents.
However, a majority of the Thai public supports the marriage equality bill. Last year, 60 per cent of adults in Thailand said they supported legalizing same-sex marriage in a survey by the Pew Research Center.
泰國立法機關批准同性婚姻，為東南亞首例
泰國立法者週二投票通過了婚姻平權法案，此舉使該國走上了成為東南亞第一個同性婚姻合法化的明確道路。
週二下午，泰國參議院以 130 票對 4 票、部分棄權的結果通過了該法案。 該法案於三月獲得眾議院批准。 該立法在經過參議院委員會和憲法法院審查並獲得國王御准後將成為法律，人們普遍預計這一手續會獲得批准。
18 歲的活動家 Plaifa Kyoka Shodladd 在投票後在參議院表示：“經過 20 年的努力，讓此事合法化，最終，愛獲勝。”
該法案的通過凸顯了泰國作為亞洲同性戀伴侶相對避風港的地位。 只有台灣和尼泊爾將同性婚姻合法化。
週二下午，泰國參議院以 130 票對 4 票、部分棄權的結果通過了該法案。 該法案於三月獲得眾議院批准。 該立法在經過參議院委員會和憲法法院審查並獲得國王御准後將成為法律，人們普遍預計這一手續會獲得批准。
18 歲的活動家 Plaifa Kyoka Shodladd 在投票後在參議院表示：“經過 20 年的努力，讓此事合法化，最終，愛獲勝。”
該法案的通過凸顯了泰國作為亞洲同性戀伴侶相對避風港的地位。 只有台灣和尼泊爾將同性婚姻合法化。
儘管印度去年就差點做到這一點，但最高法院將決定推遲到了議會。 總理莫迪強烈反對同性婚姻合法化。
在一些亞洲國家，同性性行為屬於刑事犯罪。 同性婚姻非法的印尼於 2022 年將婚外性行為定為非法。 該組織後來表示，在國際社會廣泛抗議後，不會執行處決。
泰國的法案將婚姻定義為 18 歲及以上的兩人之間的伴侶關係，但未具體說明其性別。 它也賦予 L.G.B.T.Q. 夫婦在收養子女、申請稅收減免、繼承財產以及在伴侶喪失行為能力時同意接受醫療方面享有平等權利。
該法案自 20 多年前推出第一個版本以來一直備受爭議。 雖然泰國是世界上對同性戀伴侶最開放的地方之一，但它在其他方面的社會保守性。 二月份，立法者駁回了一項允許人們更改官方文件性別的提案。
但大多數泰國公眾支持婚姻平權法案。 去年，皮尤研究中心的一項調查顯示，60% 的泰國成年人表示他們支持同性婚姻合法化。
Source: NYT
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