The Race of Same-Sex Marriages in South East Asia

Sher Zada
Since Henry Gerber established the Society for Human Rights in 1924 in the United States, the movement for the legalization of same-sex relationships has gained momentum in various countries. Although it’s evident that the United States was not an aspirational ground for the gay rights movement, the Society of Human Rights founder came up with this idea after returning from Germany, where he served in an American military base, where he endorsed people of same-sex intuitions. The U.S. at that time was not so feasible to consider same-sex relations legal as until now we see tolerance in the societal sphere for gay people. In 1969 riots started following a police raid on a gay club, Stonewall Inn in New York City, where the gay rights activists confronted police and jammed different cities in the country for six days, which is considered a milestone for the gay rights movement in the U.S and the rest of the world. However, the legalization of same-sex marriages is still a controversial issue in the U.S., nineteen out of fifty states have legalized LGBTQ+ or same-sex marriages. Currently according to Gallup News 2024 report, now 7.6% of the U.S. population is comprised of LGBTQ+ people, while a majority of them are Gen Z. Despite, the increasing ratio of gay people in the U.S, their equal acceptance in public is a matter of contention, due various factors including, politics, religious, institutional and social constraints. Human Rights Campaign 2024report reveals that currently thirty-six countries Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Uruguay have legalized same-sex marriages. Evidence shows that the momentum of the call for equal rights to marriage from the gay community is strengthened more in the developed world, compared to the developing countries. However, the practice has been expanding from one region to another, although facing challenges of approval on account of constitutional technicality and resistance from the different groups who push back the voice of same-sex marriages on religious and moral grounds. The trend of same-sex marriages has been increasing due to the exposure of the new generation to technology and the use of social media communication tools, psychological transformation, and the decline of the role of traditional family socialization. On January 23, 2025, After Taiwan (2019) in East Asia, Nepal (2024) in South Asia, and Thailand an ASEAN member counted herself as a Thirty-eight state that allows same-sex marriages. There is an interesting factor of religion in both Taiwan and Thailand both are Buddhist-majority countries(Taiwan 35.1% and Thailand 94 %), According toAnna Fleck a data journalist, the Philippines has an 11 % gay population, and Thailand has 10% gay population, the question arises here, why did Thailand decide to be the first ASEAN country to join the club of gay rights aspirant community than the Philippines? What does Thailand want to show the world? And which country will be the next in ASEAN to take the same plight? Referring to the first point of contention, Thailand is one of those countries where there is no ban on prostitution or the sex industry. However, legal actions are taken against the violators aimed at keeping the soft image of the country. As per Wadekar’sresearch in 2023, Thailand is the largest sex tourism market in Southeast Asia, generating USD 6.4 billion in annual revenue from underground prostitution activities every year. There is no severe restriction by the Thai government for tourists and moral taboo from the local society on same-sex or heterosexual practices, which is their means of income. Legalization of same-sex marriages, will boost the tourism industry and attract more same-sex couples to visit Thailand which has a history of sex liberty. Second, leading in the legalization of LGBTQ+ marriages, Thailand wants the attention of the Western world to strengthen its diplomatic ties divert the focus of the West from other key players inside ASEAN, and boast its shivering economy through foreign funding and grants. The Philippines has a 78.8% Christian population, where the percentage of LGBTQ+ is above 11 %, however, there is no such steps of legalization of same-sex marriages have not been taken so far. According to a survey conducted by Social Weather Stations, shows that 79% of Filipinos agreed that “gays or lesbians are just as trustworthy as any other straight Filipino.” Meanwhile, the percentage who agree that “gays or lesbians have contributed a lot to the progress of our society” was only a bit lower at 73%. Vietnam has 10.8 million population, where 86.32 % have a majority non-religious population besides, Taoism, Buddhism, Christianity, and other religions. A survey conducted by PAPI and UNDP in 2023revealed that support for same-sex marriage increased significantly from 50%to 65%. However, law reform might take decades to achieve visible results due to the challenges of technical and political obstacles. Indonesia is the largest Muslim majority (87%) country, Jakarta post refersto the Pew survey 3% of the Indonesian population is LGBT. This number means 7.5 million of the country’s 250 million inhabitants. [CONTINUE] The state adopts the Pancasila the principle of civility and divinity together and avoids discrimination based on religious and gender differences. However, due to the presence of strong religious ideologies and cultural traits, the legalization of same-sex marriages is unpredictable due to the pressure from religious groups and public dissent. On the other hand, Malaysia is a culturally and religiously conservative country. The Constitution does not specifically protect against discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression. Same-sex sexual acts are criminalized through the application of various offenses under the penal code throughout Malaysia and under state Sharia laws, applicable to Muslims. There is no doubt that the current move in Thailand’s legalization of same-sex marriages or LGBTQ+ coupling will put other ASEAN members, especially non-Muslim partners in the challenge of competing with each other, by bringing reforms in their constitutions, however, this will also create a point of contestations for two major key players Indonesia and Malaysia how to preserve their religious and cultural identity and save their next generations from the quest of legalizing same-sex marriages.