REVEALING the RAINBOW – Destination Justice 2018
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Revealing the Rainbow The Human Rights Situation of Southeast Asia’s LGBTIQ Communities and Their Defenders D E S T I N A T I O N J U S T I C E Revealing the Rainbow The Human Rights Situation Of Southeast Asia’s LGBTIQ Communities and Their Defenders Printed with the financial support of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The contents of this report do not necessarily reflect the opinion of OHCHR. © Destination Justice 2018. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law. About Destination Justice Established since 2011, Destination Justice is a social change organisation. We are changemakers who believe that justice is key to a peaceful society — particularly a society where people can resolve their issues by resorting to independent, fair and transparent justice; a society where laws are made by the people, for them, and freely accessible to them; and furthermore, a society where everybody is equal no matter who they are, what they think, or who they love. To achieve this, we work according to the idea that from little things big things can grow: one mind changed; one piece of information put out there; one practice improved. We set ideas in motion, we provide tools, and we take action when necessary. Through our Rainbow Justice Project, Destination Justice aims to foster dialogue in Southeast Asia on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, and sexual characteristics (SOGIESC), and to provide advocacy tools to changemakers for the promotion and protection of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) community’s rights. Cover Photo Credit: “Dancers under a large rainbow flag during the third gay pride in Vietnam”, AFP in the South China Morning Post, ‘Vietnam hosts third gay pride parade as attitudes soften’, 3 August 2014, available at http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1565550/vietnam-hosts-third-gay-pride-parade-attitudes-soften (last visited 27 November 2017). THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT THE PHNOM PENH www.justice.cafe Contents Abbreviations and Defined Terms................................................................................................................. 3 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................... 7 Legal Background ................................................................................................................................................... 12 Brunei: Country Profile ........................................................................................................................................ 26 Brunei: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ...................................................................................................................... 35 Cambodia: Country Profile ................................................................................................................................ 41 Cambodia: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ............................................................................................................. 52 Indonesia: Country Profile ................................................................................................................................. 57 Indonesia: LGBTIQ HRD Interview .............................................................................................................. 77 Laos: Country Profile ............................................................................................................................................ 80 Laos: LGBTIQ HRD Interview .......................................................................................................................... 89 Malaysia: Country Profile ................................................................................................................................... 92 Malaysia: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ............................................................................................................. 105 Myanmar: Country Profile ............................................................................................................................... 110 Myanmar: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ............................................................................................................. 120 The Philippines: Country Profile ................................................................................................................. 125 The Philippines: LGBTIQ HRD Interview .............................................................................................. 137 Singapore: Country Profile ............................................................................................................................. 143 Singapore: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ........................................................................................................... 157 Thailand: Country Profile ................................................................................................................................. 161 Thailand: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ............................................................................................................... 173 Timor-Leste: Country Profile ........................................................................................................................ 176 Timor-Leste: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ..................................................................................................... 188 Viet Nam: Country Profile................................................................................................................................ 191 Viet Nam: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ............................................................................................................ 202 Southeast Asian Region: LGBTIQ HRD Interview ......................................................................... 205 Destination Justice | 2018 | Revealing the Rainbow i Concluding Recommendations ................................................................................................................. 212 Annex 1: Southeast Asian States’ Ratification of Relevant Human Rights Instruments ................................................................................................................................................................ 214 Annex 2: Southeast Asian States’ Votes Regarding Establishing a UN Independent Expert on Protection against Violence and Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity....................................................................... 215 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................................ 216 ii Destination Justice | 2018 | Revealing the Rainbow Abbreviations and Defined Terms ACSC/APF ASEAN Civil Society Conference/ASEAN People’s Forum AHRD ASEAN Human Rights Declaration AICHR ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome ASC ASEAN SOGIE Caucus ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations ATP Association of Transgender People in the Philippines BERSIH Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Malaysia) Brunei Negara Brunei Darussalam or Nation of Brunei CamASEAN CamASEAN Youth’s Future (Cambodia) Cambodia Kingdom of Cambodia CAT Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women CEDAWC United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women CODIVA Coalition for Diversity and Action (Timor-Leste) COMANGO Coalition of Malaysian NGOs in the UPR Process CCPR United Nations Human Rights Committee CPRD Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child CSO Civil society organisation Destination Justice | 2018 | Revealing the Rainbow 3 DHRD Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms EU European Union FJI Islamic Jihadist Front (Indonesia) GBV Gender-based violence GONGOs Government-owned and controlled non-governmental organisations HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus HRC United Nations Human Rights Council HRD Human rights defender ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICCPR OP2 Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty ICESCR International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ICS Center Information, Connection and Sharing Center (Viet Nam) IDAHOT International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHO) (formerly known as the International Day Against Homophobia) ILGA International Lesbian and Gay Association ICNL International Center for Not-for-Profit Law Indonesia Republic of Indonesia INGO International non-governmental organisation IPON International Peace Observers Network (Philippines) ISF International Stabilization Force (Timor-Leste) JAG Joint Action