Thailand, the first country in Southeast Asia to approve equal marriage

Thailand this Tuesday became the first country in the Southeast Asian and the third on the continent to legalize equality marriagea milestone after years of struggle that was celebrated with several celebrations and a march LGTBI+ in the capital.

The Thai Senate approved the bill on Monday in a third and final reading with an overwhelming majority (130 votes in favor, 4 against and 18 abstentions), following the path marked by the great support it obtained in Congress in March. .

The regulations are expected to come into force at the end of the year, after passing a series of formal procedures: after the support of both chambers, it will be sent to the Government Cabinet and will subsequently be signed by the King of Thailand, Maha Vajiralongkorn.

The legislation would finally come into force 120 days after its publication in the Royal Gazette, which is expected to happen towards the end of October or November, when the first weddings could be celebrated.

“Thailand’s new marriage equality law is a triumph for justice and human rights (…) The road to this point has been long and riddled with challenges, but today’s vote to guarantee marriage equality marks a moment historic that deserves celebration”, Mookdapa Yangyuenpradorn, an activist with the NGO Fortify Rights, said in a statement.

To celebrate this historic vote, several events were held in Bangkok, including an event promoted by Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin – one of the promoters of the change – at Government House, as well as a parade along some of the main avenues of Bangkok. the city.

Celebrations and hope for more changes

“I am very happy with the approval of the law, and in the future I hope to get married. “I am optimistic about the future of Thailand and I hope there are more changes for the LGTBI+ community.”said Siwapot Phujomdao from one of the points in the city where celebrations were held.

A small stage for performances, the display of rainbow flags and the parade of dozens of couples holding hands starred in this march, called by activist Waddao Ann Chumaporn, who defined today as “the most important one, the one we have been waiting for for a long time.”

“Our voices have been heard and today we have triumphed. “We have brought equality to Thailand,” he remarked in a statement.

Among the fundamental changes that the law intends to introduce is the naming of marriage as a union between “two people”instead of between “A Man and a Woman”and the modification in the legal status of “husband and wife” to one “married couple”, without gender specification.

In addition, the new law guarantees LGTBI+ unions the same rights that heterosexual couples enjoy, including those related to inheritance, tax relief and adoption of children.

Already on Pride Day last year, celebrated with a massive march in the streets of the Thai capital, the legalization of equal marriage was advocated, one of the proposals in the electoral program of Avanzar, the winning party of the 2023 elections. that could not form a government due to the blockade of the conservative Senate.

Srettha Thavisin, who managed to form a government with a coalition with other parties, including two pro-military parties, also supported the initiative.

Once it comes into force, Thailand will be the third Asian country where homosexual couples can marry, after Taiwan and Nepal, and the first in Southeast Asia, a region where the setbacks in the rights of this group are palpable in countries like Indonesia. , Malaysia or Brunei.

Although Thailand has one of the largest and most visible LGTBI+ communities in all of Asia, activists have been criticizing for years that conservative Thai laws do not reflect the changes and attitudes of society in recent decades, failing to recognize transgender people. and to non-binary ones, among other examples.

“Activists have been fighting for this for more than 20 years,” Waddao Ann Chumaporn remarked in the statement, in which she stated that this law is only “the principle of creating an egalitarian society that respects gender diversity.”

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