Tomorrow marks the end of Pride Month, a celebration of the LGBTQ+ community and its supporters. It started in the United States and has since spread around the world. But in parts of the Asia Pacific, there’s still a mixed reaction.
Bangkok hosted one of Southeast Asia’s biggest Pride Month celebrations this year.
Media outlet Lifestyle Asia reported the event brought out celebrities, politicians and even Buddhist monks.
Thailand has a tradition of tolerance, but while same-sex relationships are legal, they do not have the same legal protections as opposite-sex couples.
Homosexuality is banned in locations from Malaysia to Bangladesh — and even within a country, laws can vary.
When it comes to Indonesia, the island of Bali is tolerant, while in the conservative province of Aceh, same-sex relations can be punished by public caning.
This week, the South China Morning Post reported that in many Muslim-majority countries in the region, Pride Month has been marked by smaller gatherings in private homes — and other safe spaces — including embassies in some cases.
One place that’s seen a change in Pride events is Singapore.
The city-state’s annual Pink Dot celebration has been held since 2009, but laws have been slow to change.
Until last year, a colonial-era law criminalized consensual sex between two men.
Time Magazine reported that while that law is now off the books, the LGBTQ+ community still faces discrimination in areas from jobs to housing.
