Homosexuality in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

Homosexuality is taboo in Saudi Arabia and is punished with imprisonment, corporal punishment and the death penalty.

illegality

In Saudi Arabia , homosexual acts are punishable by law and subject to the highest possible death penalty . The courts also impose lashes and prison sentences of varying lengths. At the end of 2007, two men were sentenced to 7,000 lashes each for homosexual intercourse.

Social situation

Due to the illegality, there are no LGBT communities in Saudi Arabia. Homosexuals are thereby pushed into the social underground. In general, social life is severely restricted due to the strict religious regulations. Bars, nightclubs, and cinemas are also illegal for straight people. The position of women is strictly regulated, which also affects lesbian women. An Islamic religious police, the so-called "Committee for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vices", oversees social life. Massive censorship of the media, especially the internet, is being carried out by the Saudi Arabian government.

See also

• Laws on homosexuality
• Equality (homosexuals)
• Homosexuality in Islam

Web links

• SodomyLaws.org: Saudi Arabia ( Memento from May 5, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• The Atlantic: Kingdom in the Closet

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Brian Whitaker: Saudis' tough line on gays. The Guardian , April 9, 2005, accessed July 11, 2009 . 
2. ↑ 7,000 lashes for two gays. queer.de, October 5, 2007, accessed on July 11, 2009 .