Homosexuality in East Timor

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Pride March (Marsa Diversidade) 2019 in Dili

Homosexuality is legal in East Timor .

social acceptance

Pride March 2019 in Dili

Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is prohibited by law, but not anchored in the constitution. In the Constituent Assembly , 52 MPs spoke out against the inclusion of “sexual orientation” as a point why one should not be discriminated against, only 13 in favor. 14 abstained.

Sexual orientation or gender are not big issues in society , but discrimination and stigmatization are commonplace. These include school bullying, physical abuse, and evictions from the home. LBGTI activists criticize the police, judiciary and authorities often ignoring such crimes . Same-sex marriage is just a long-term goal.

On the occasion of the first Pride Day in East Timor in June 2017, East Timor's Prime Minister Rui Maria de Araújo condemned discrimination and violence against members of the LGBT community, including from their families, and stressed their “important contribution to the development of the country”. He is the first head of government in Southeast Asia to speak out in favor of supporting homosexuals. About 500 people attended the Pride March. There was already a conference on LGBTQ in 2016.

The former president and independence hero Xanana Gusmão appeared in support in a 15-minute video that the youth organization Hatutan Youth shot about well-known LBGTI people. The video aims to make up for the lack of literature in the national languages Tetum and Portuguese .

Organizations

Pride March 2019 in Dili

The Timor-Leste LBGTI Pride Day is organized by the Hatutan network, in which several groups are organized.

There are some LGBT organizations, such as CODIVA (Coalition on Diversity and Action) and Arcoiris ( Portuguese rainbow ) by Iram Saeed and Bella Galhos . Another is the Fundasaun Timor Hari'i (FTH), which offers examinations and educational work on sexually transmitted diseases . The members are transgender and homosexual men who work on a voluntary basis. AIDS is a key issue here. The risk of infection in the queer community is high. 107 Transgender and homosexual men get tested by the FTH every three months. Support comes from doctors from the Ministry of Health . There are also self-help groups such as Casa de Rosa for transgender and Gay Amor for homosexual men and transgender in Dili . Others have organized in Baucau , Maliana and Oecusse . These five groups have a total of 300 members (2014 figures).

Events

Pride March 2019 in Dili

On 28/29 June 2017 the first Timor-Leste LBGTI Pride Day took place with the first Pride Parade in East Timor's capital Dili on the second day. Several hundred people took part. A Catholic nun who runs a shelter for people at risk, including LBGTI people, said a prayer at the beginning. The end marked a big concert. The second "Marsa Diversidade" took place on July 20, 2018, and on July 12 in 2019. The third march went from the Foreign Ministry in the Fatuhada district to the State Secretariat for Youth and Sport in Bidau Lecidere . The march turned into a big family festival with thousands of visitors.

Bella Galhos is a member of the Partidu Libertasaun Popular (PLP), which is run by Taur Matan Ruak. On June 15, 2018, she said that she had been informed within the party that she could not be considered as a member of the new East Timorese government . This was justified by the fact that, as a publicly acknowledged lesbian, she was "morally unacceptable". Galhos said she was under discussion as State Secretary for Tourism, Youth and Sport, Vocational Training and Employment Policy or Gender Equality. Fidelis Magalhães , one of the leaders of the PLP, stressed that Galhos was nevertheless "a valuable party member". The reason for the non-appeal, explained Magalhães, could have been sexual orientation. But the decision was made by the three party leaders of the ruling coalition Aliança para Mudança e Progresso (AMP).

Web links

Commons : Homosexuality in East Timor  - Collection of Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Freedom House: Country Report 2015 (English), accessed on July 26, 2016.
  2. ↑ Annemarie Devereux: Timor-Leste's Bill of Rights: A Preliminary History , ANU Press 2015, limited preview in Google book search.
  3. ↑ a b c d Sapo Noticías: Primeiro-Ministro: Discriminação e violência contra jovens LGBT em Timor-Leste prejudica país , June 29, 2017 , accessed on June 29, 2017.
  4. ↑ Pride Timor-Leste 2017: Timor-Leste LGBTI Pride 2017, World, Wednesday, June 28, 2017 , accessed on June 29, 2017.
  5. ↑ a b The Dili Weekly: Transcending gender in Timor-Leste , July 14, 2014 ( Memento of the original from July 18, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed July 26, 2016. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.thediliweekly.com
  6. ↑ Gay Star Loves: Timor Leste just had its first ever Pride March , July 3, 2017 , accessed on July 3, 2017.
  7. ^ A b Sophie Raynor: Behind Timor-Leste's Pride , New Naratif, June 7, 2018 , accessed June 10, 2018.
  8. ↑ Gay Star NEws: East Timor's LGBTI community keeps getting stronger together , April 13, 2018 , accessed on April 14, 2018.
  9. ↑ Gay Star Loves: Timor Leste PM comes out supporting LGBTI rights , July 3, 2017 , accessed on July 3, 2017.
  10. ↑ SAPO: Milhares em festa percorrem a zona central de Díli na Marcha “Pride 2019” , July 12, 2019 , accessed on July 13, 2019.
  11. ↑ Diário de Notícias: Ativista timorense diz que foi excluída do próximo Governo pela sua orientação sexual , June 15, 2018 , accessed on June 15, 2018.