LGBT rights by country or territory explained

Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality.Notably,, 37 countries recognize same-sex marriage.[1] [2] By contrast, not counting non-state actors and extrajudicial killings, only two countries are believed to impose the death penalty on consensual same-sex sexual acts: Iran and Afghanistan.[3] [4] [5] The death penalty is officially law, but generally not practiced, in Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Somalia (in the autonomous state of Jubaland) and the United Arab Emirates.[6] [7] LGBT people also face extrajudicial killings in the Russian region of Chechnya.[8] Sudan rescinded its unenforced death penalty for anal sex (hetero- or homosexual) in 2020. Fifteen countries have stoning on the books as a penalty for adultery, which (in light of the illegality of gay marriage in those countries) would by default include gay sex, but this is enforced by the legal authorities in Iran and Nigeria (in the northern third of the country).[9] [10]

In 2011, the United Nations Human Rights Council passed its first resolution recognizing LGBT rights, following which the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a report documenting violations of the rights of LGBT people, including hate crimes, criminalization of homosexual activity, and discrimination. Following the issuance of the report, the United Nations urged all countries which had not yet done so to enact laws protecting basic LGBT rights. A 2022 study found that LGBT rights (as measured by ILGA-Europe's Rainbow Index) were correlated with less HIV/AIDS incidence among gay and bisexual men independently of risky sexual behavior.

The 2023 Equaldex Equality Index ranks the Nordic countries, Chile, Uruguay, Canada, the Benelux countries, Spain, Andorra, and Malta among the best for LGBT rights. The index ranks Nigeria, Yemen, Brunei, Afghanistan, Somalia, Mauritania, Palestine, and Iran among the worst.[11] Asher & Lyric ranked Canada, Sweden, and the Netherlands as the three safest nations for LGBT people in its 2023 index.[12]

Scope of laws

Laws that affect LGBT people include, but are not limited to, the following:

History of LGBT-related laws

See also: LGBT history.

Ancient India

Ayoni or non-vaginal sex of all types is punishable in the Arthashastra. Homosexual acts are, however, treated as a smaller offence punishable by a fine, while unlawful heterosexual sex carries much harsher punishment. The Dharmsastras, especially the later ones, prescribe against non-vaginal sex like the Vashistha Dharmasutra. The Yājñavalkya Smṛti prescribes fines for such acts including those with other men. Manusmriti prescribes light punishments for such acts.[13] [14] Vanita states that the verses about punishment for a sex between female and a maiden is due to its strong emphasis on a maiden's sexual purity.[15]

Ancient Israel

The ancient Law of Moses (the Torah) forbids men from lying with men (i.e., from having intercourse) in Leviticus 18 and gives a story of attempted homosexual rape in Genesis 19, in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, after which the cities were soon destroyed with "brimstone and fire, from the Lord"[16] [17] and the death penalty was prescribed to its inhabitants – and to Lot's wife, who was turned into a pillar of salt because she turned back to watch the cities' destruction.[18] [19] In Deuteronomy 22:5, cross-dressing is condemned as "abominable".[20] [21]

Assyria

In Assyrian society, sex crimes were punished identically whether they were homosexual or heterosexual.[22] An individual faced no punishment for penetrating someone of equal social class, a cult prostitute, or with someone whose gender roles were not considered solidly masculine. Such sexual relations were even seen as good fortune, with an Akkadian tablet, the Šumma ālu, reading, "If a man copulates with his equal from the rear, he becomes the leader among his peers and brothers".[23] However, homosexual relationships with fellow soldiers, slaves, royal attendants, or those where a social better was submissive or penetrated, were treated as bad omens.[24] [25]

Middle Assyrian Law Codes dating 1075 BC has a particularly harsh law for homosexuality in the military, which reads: "If a man have intercourse with his brother-in-arms, they shall turn him into a eunuch."[26] A similar law code reads, "If a seignior lay with his neighbor, when they have prosecuted him (and) convicted him, they shall lie with him (and) turn him into a eunuch". This law code condemns a situation that involves homosexual rape. Any Assyrian male could visit a prostitute or lie with another male, just as long as false rumors or forced sex were not involved with another male.[27]

Ancient Rome

In ancient Rome, the bodies of citizen youths were strictly off-limits, and the Lex Scantinia imposed penalties on those who committed a sex crime (stuprum) against a freeborn male minor.[28] Acceptable same-sex partners were males excluded from legal protections as citizens: slaves, male prostitutes, and the infames, entertainers or others who might be technically free but whose lifestyles set them outside the law.

A male citizen who willingly performed oral sex or received anal sex was disparaged, but there is only limited evidence of legal penalties against these men.[29] In courtroom and political rhetoric, charges of effeminacy and passive sexual behaviors were directed particularly at "democratic" politicians (populares) such as Julius Caesar and Mark Antony.[30]

Roman law addressed the rape of a male citizen as early as the 2nd century BC when it was ruled that even a man who was "disreputable and questionable" had the same right as other citizens not to have his body subjected to forced sex.[31] A law probably dating to the dictatorship of Julius Caesar defined rape as forced sex against "boy, woman, or anyone"; the rapist was subject to execution, a rare penalty in Roman law.[32] A male classified as infamis, such as a prostitute or actor, could not as a matter of law be raped, nor could a slave, who was legally classified as property; the slave's owner, however, could prosecute the rapist for property damage.[33]

In the Roman army of the Republic, sex among fellow soldiers violated the decorum against intercourse with citizens and was subject to harsh penalties, including death,[34] as a violation of military discipline.[35] The Greek historian Polybius (2nd century BC) lists deserters, thieves, perjurers, and "...on young men who have abused their persons" as subject to the fustuarium, clubbing to death.[36] Ancient sources are most concerned with the effects of sexual harassment by officers, but the young soldier who brought an accusation against his superior needed to show that he had not willingly taken the passive role or prostituted himself.[37] Soldiers were free to have relations with their male slaves;[38] the use of a fellow citizen-soldier's body was prohibited, not homosexual behaviors per se.[39] By the late Republic and throughout the Imperial period, there is increasing evidence that men whose lifestyle marked them as "homosexual" in the modern sense served openly.[40]

Although Roman law did not recognize marriage between men, and in general Romans regarded marriage as a heterosexual union with the primary purpose of producing children, in the early Imperial period some male couples were celebrating traditional marriage rites. Juvenal remarks with disapproval that his friends often attended such ceremonies.[41] The emperor Nero had two marriages to men, once as the bride (with a freedman Pythagoras) and once as the groom. His consort Sporus appeared in public as Nero's wife wearing the regalia that was customary for the Roman empress.[42]

Apart from measures to protect the prerogatives of citizens, the prosecution of homosexuality as a general crime began in the 3rd century of the Christian era when male prostitution was banned by Philip the Arab. By the end of the 4th century, after the Roman Empire had come under Christian rule, passive homosexuality was punishable by burning.[43] "Death by sword" was the punishment for a "man coupling like a woman" under the Theodosian Code.[44] Under Justinian, all same-sex acts, passive or active, no matter who the partners are, were declared contrary to nature and punishable by death.[45]

British Empire

See also: LGBT rights in the Commonwealth of Nations. The United Kingdom introduced anti-homosexuality laws throughout its colonies, particularly in the 19th century when the British Empire was at its peak. As of 2018, more than half of the 71 countries that criminalised homosexuality were former British colonies or protectorates.

Netherlands

In 2001, the Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage.[46]

Global LGBT rights maps

Note that for simplicity the table below does not distinguish between 'legal' and 'lawful'. An action can only be legal or illegal where a specific law has been passed.

LGBT-related laws by country or territory

Africa

See main article: LGBT rights in Africa.

Americas

See main article: LGBT rights in the Americas.

Asia

See main article: LGBT rights in Asia.

Europe

See main article: LGBT rights in Europe.

Oceania

See main article: LGBT rights in Oceania.

See also

References

  1. Web site: Countries that allow same-sex marriage . 2023-06-15 . timesofindia.indiatimes.com.
  2. Web site: Same-Sex Marriage Around the World . . 9 June 2023 . 26 October 2023.
  3. Web site: LGBT People in Afghanistan After the Taliban Takeover . . 15 November 2022 . 26 January 2022.
  4. Book: Ahmady, Kameel Et al 2020: Forbidden Tale (A comprehensive study on lesbian, gay, bisexuals (LGB) in Iran). AP Lambert Academic Publishing, Germany. . Kameel Ahmady.
  5. News: Kumar . Ruchi . 2022-01-26 . Lives of LGBTQ+ Afghans 'dramatically worse' under Taliban rule, finds survey . 2024-02-10 . The Guardian . en-GB . 0261-3077.
  6. Web site: 2019-02-13 . United Arab Emirates . 2024-02-10 . Human Dignity Trust . en.
  7. Web site: Saudi Arabia: Man sentenced for homosexuality. Amnesty .
  8. Web site: He Was Targeted in Chechnya for Being Gay. Now, He's Being Hunted in Europe . 2024-02-10 . TIME.com.
  9. Kameel Ahmady . Ahmady, Kameel, LGBT In Iran: The Homophobic Laws and Social System in Islamic Republic of Iran, PalArch's Journal of Archaeology of Egypt / Egyptology, Volume 18, Pages 1446- 1464, Issue, No. 18 (2021). . PalArch's Journal of Archaeology of Egypt / Egyptology.
  10. Book: Mendos, Lucas Ramón. State-Sponsored Homophobia 2019. ILGA. 2019. 13th. Geneva. 15. 13 September 2019. 22 December 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191222220100/https://ilga.org/downloads/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2019.pdf. live.
  11. Web site: Staff . January 1, 2023 . LGBT Equality Index: The Most LGBT-Friendly Countries in the World . March 5, 2023 . Equaldex . en.
  12. Web site: 5 June 2023 . The 203 Worst (& Safest) Countries for LGBTQ+ Travel in 2023 . 20 August 2023 . Asher & Lyric.
  13. Book: Ali, Daud. https://books.google.com/books?id=uP57zh13BqQC&pg=PA50. Sexual Diversity in Asia, c. 600–1950. Routledge. 2012. 978-0415600590. Reyes. Raquel A. G.. 50–51. Censured sexual acts and early medieval society in India. 2011049072. Daud Ali. Clarence-Smith. William G.. William Gervase Clarence-Smith. 16 August 2019. 14 June 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200614190258/https://books.google.com/books?id=uP57zh13BqQC&pg=PA50. live.
  14. Book: Vanita, Ruth . Same-Sex Love in India . October 20, 2008 . Penguin Books Limited . 978-81-8475-969-3 . May 12, 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200804091538/https://books.google.com/books?id=P2nprDLPRLwC&pg=PT55&dq=manusmriti+cart+175&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwib7t3XivXhAhXUinAKHZGlBDoQ6AEIUjAH#v=onepage&q=ayoni&f=false . 4 August 2020.
  15. Book: Vanita, Ruth. https://books.google.com/books?id=ofDIAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA32. Love's Rite: Same-Sex Marriage in India and the West. Palgrave Macmillan. 2005. 978-1403970381. 32. Introduction. 2005047571. Ruth Vanita. 16 August 2019. 4 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200804083558/https://books.google.com/books?id=ofDIAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA32. live.
  16. Book: Fields. Weston W.. Sodom and Gomorrah: History and Motif in Biblical Narrative. A&C Black. 1997. 978-0567062611. 18 August 2019. 17 February 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220217084908/https://books.google.com/books?id=i9lA3UVoHjAC&q=Sodom+gomorrah+destroyed&pg=PA159. live.
  17. Book: Loader. J. A.. A Tale of Two Cities: Sodom and Gomorrah in the Old Testament, Early Jewish and Early Christian Traditions. Peeters Publishers. 1990. 9789024253333. 91207650. 18 August 2019. 7 May 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210507231657/https://books.google.com/books?id=qJMA_zTueTMC&q=Sodom+gomorrah. live.
  18. Book: STRAUSS . Gerhard Friedrich Abraham . SLEE . Jane Mary . On Restitution; Lot and his Wife; The Rich Man; Christian Composure; [sermons] by ... F. S. ... translated from the German, by Miss Slee ]. 1837 . 18 August 2019 . 1 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210401102700/https://books.google.com/books?id=exFhAAAAcAAJ&q=wife+of+lot&pg=PA60 . live .
  19. Book: Lot's Wife. A sermon at Paule's Crosse [on Luke xvii. 32. By R. W., i.e. R. Wilkinson.] ]. 1607 . 18 August 2019 . R. W . 1 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210401102709/https://books.google.com/books?id=vSpkAAAAcAAJ&q=wife+of+lot&pg=PA14 . live .
  20. Book: https://books.google.com/books?id=7fsoDAAAQBAJ&q=deuteronomy+cross-dressing&pg=PA39. Dressing Judeans and Christians in Antiquity. Routledge. 2016. 978-1317147978. Upson-Saia. Kristi. 39. Cross-dressing, Masculinity, and the Social Body in Late Antiquity. 2014000554. 18 August 2019. 2014. Daniel-Hughes. Carly. Batten. Alicia J.. 1 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210401102714/https://books.google.com/books?id=7fsoDAAAQBAJ&q=deuteronomy+cross-dressing&pg=PA39. live.
  21. Book: Bullough. Vern L.. https://books.google.com/books?id=KcD7nVelXJgC&q=deuteronomy+cross-dressing&pg=PR10. Cross Dressing, Sex, and Gender. Bullough. Bonnie. University of Pennsylvania Press. 1993. 9780812214314. x. Introduction. 92032030. 18 October 2020. 1 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210401102723/https://books.google.com/books?id=KcD7nVelXJgC&q=deuteronomy+cross-dressing&pg=PR10. live.
  22. Book: Nissinen, Martti . Homoeroticism in the Biblical World: A Historical Perspective . Fortress Press . 2004 . 24–28 . 978-1-4514-1433-2 . May 12, 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200414092410/https://books.google.com/books?id=-sHSNPG85tUC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA24 . 14 April 2020 .
  23. Book: Greenberg, David F.. The Construction of Homosexuality. 15 August 1990. University of Chicago Press. 9780226306285. 31 July 2018. 28 June 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140628122610/http://books.google.com/books?id=RKhFRgR-1awC&q=equal+basis. live.
  24. Pritchard, p. 181.
  25. Gay Rights Or Wrongs: A Christian's Guide to Homosexual Issues and Ministry, by Mike Mazzalonga, 1996, p.11
  26. Book: Tritiya-Prakriti: People of the Third Sex. 9781453503164. Wilhelm. Amara Das. 18 May 2010. Xlibris Corporation . 22 March 2017. 17 February 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220217041536/https://books.google.com/books?id=gRjGApZVwPIC&pg=PA69. live.
  27. G. R. Driver and J. C. Miles, The Assyrian Laws (Oxford, Clarendon Press [1935]), 71.
  28. [Plutarch]
  29. Williams, Roman Homosexuality, pp. 214–215; Richlin, "Not before Homosexuality," passim.
  30. Catharine Edwards, The Politics of Immorality in Ancient Rome (Cambridge University Press, 1993), pp. 63–64.
  31. As recorded in a fragment of the speech De Re Floria by Cato the Elder (frg. 57 Jordan = Aulus Gellius 9.12.7), noted and discussed by Richlin, "Not before Homosexuality," p. 561.
  32. Richlin, "Not before Homosexuality," pp. 562–563. See also Digest 48.5.35 [34] on legal definitions of rape that included boys.
  33. Under the Lex Aquilia. See McGinn, Prostitution, Sexuality, and the Law in Ancient Rome, p. 314.
  34. McGinn, Prostitution, Sexuality and the Law in Ancient Rome, p. 40.
  35. Sara Elise Phang, Roman Military Service: Ideologies of Discipline in the Late Republic and Early Principate (Cambridge University Press, 2008), p. 93.
  36. Web site: The Histories Fragments of Book VI . . May 12, 2024.
  37. Phang, The Marriage of Roman Soldiers, pp. 280–285.
  38. Phang, The Marriage of Roman Soldiers, p. 3.
  39. Williams, Roman Homosexuality, p. 112 et passim.
  40. Book: Phang, Sara Elise . The Marriage of Roman Soldiers . 13 May 2024 . 285–292 . BRILL . 978-90-04-12155-3 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200805022337/https://books.google.com/books?id=jyFdUxqYZ48C&pg=PA285#v=onepage&q=%22more%20tolerant%20of%20homosexual%20relations%20between%20soldiers%22 . 5 August 2020.
  41. Juvenal, Satire 2; Williams, Roman Homosexuality, p. 28.
  42. [Suetonius]
  43. Michael Groneberg, "Reasons for Homophobia: Three Types of Explanation," in Combatting Homophobia: Experiences and Analyses Pertinent to Education (LIT Verlag, 2011), p. 193.
  44. Codex Theodosianus 9.7.3 (4 December 342), introduced by the sons of Constantine in 342.
  45. Groneberg, "Reasons for Homophobia," p. 193.
  46. Book: Homosexuality and the Law: A Dictionary . 9781576072677 . 2001 . Abc-Clio .

External links

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