How Many Countries Where Being Gay is Illegal? Seventy Three Countries! But The Count is Down
BY
This week, the kingdom of Brunei enacted draconian laws that penalize same-sex relations and adultery with death by stoning. The news has sparked international outrage and calls for a boycott of the Brunei-owned Dorchester Hotel chain, but it has also shined a spotlight on the reality that homosexuality and gender-nonconforming identities remain illegal in dozens of countries all over the world. While the number of places where it is a capital offense is small, in many places those convicted can face fines, jail time, lashings and even life imprisonment.
Even if the laws are not strictly enforced in a given country, they're routinely used to threaten and discriminate against LGBTQ citizens. "There is no room to argue for the legal justification of criminalization of same-sex relations," said U.N. independent expert Victor Madrigal-Borloz. "Criminalization creates an incentive for persecution."
According to ILGA, an international lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex advocacy group, there are 70 U.N. member States that still criminalize consensual same-sex sexual acts. The activist site 76 Crimes adds two in-U.N. member nations, Palestine and the Cook Islands, as well as Indonesia, "where a large province and some cities outlaw homosexual acts."
Even if the laws are not strictly enforced in a given country, they're routinely used to threaten and discriminate against LGBTQ citizens. "There is no room to argue for the legal justification of criminalization of same-sex relations," said U.N. independent expert Victor Madrigal-Borloz. "Criminalization creates an incentive for persecution."
According to ILGA, an international lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex advocacy group, there are 70 U.N. member States that still criminalize consensual same-sex sexual acts. The activist site 76 Crimes adds two in-U.N. member nations, Palestine and the Cook Islands, as well as Indonesia, "where a large province and some cities outlaw homosexual acts."
While many countries that criminalize homosexuality have reputations as repressive regimes, others are popular tourist destinations with Americans unaware of the human rights violations going on beyond their resort walls:. Trinidad and Tobago only repealed its ban in 2018, for example, and in Singapore, "gross indecency" between adult men is still occasionally prosecuted. (In Malaysia, where those convicted face corporal punishment and up to 20 years in prison, travel minister Mohamad Ketapi recently insisted “I don't think we have anything like that in our country,” in reference to gay people.)
Below is the working list of nations that still criminalize consensual same-sex sexual acts between adults, according to 76 Crimes.
Afghanistan Algeria Angola Antigua and Barbuda Bangladesh Barbados Bhutan Botswana Brunei Burundi
Cameroon Comoros
Dominica
Egypt Eritrea Ethiopia
Gambia Ghana Grenada Guinea Guyana
Indonesia Iran
Jamaica
Malaysia Maldives Myanmar
Kenya Kiribati Kuwait
Liberia Libya Lebanon
Malawi Mauritania Mauritius Morocco
Namibia Nigeria
Namibia Nigeria
Oman
Pakistan Palestine Papua
New Guinea
Qatar
Samoa Saudi Arabia Senegal Sierra Leone Singapore Solomon Islands
Samoa Saudi Arabia Senegal Sierra Leone Singapore Solomon Islands
Somalia South Sudan Sudan Sri Lanka St Kitts and Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and the Grenadines Syria Swaziland
St Lucia St Vincent and the Grenadines Syria Swaziland
Tanzania Togo TongaTunisia Turkmenistan Tuvalu
Uganda United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan
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