LGBT's Around The World

 

Turkish President Attacks Gays Again Like He Does Before Elections

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has continued his re-election campaign by giving an anti-LGBTQ+ speech. Erdoğan returned to campaigning on Saturday (29 April) after stepping back for three days while recovering from a stomach infection, ahead of Turkish citizens going to the polls on 14 May. According to a Times report, in an hour-long speech in the coastal city of Izmir, he said: “In this nation, the foundations of the family are stable. LGBT will not emerge in this country.”

Uganda's Parliament Passes One of the World Strictest LGBT Law 

 

Uganda’s parliament on Tuesday passed one of the world’s strictest anti-LGBTQ bills mostly unchanged, including provision for long jail terms and the death penalty, after the president requested some parts of the original legislation be toned down. The new bill retains most of the harshest measures of the legislation adopted in March, which drew condemnation from the United States, the European Union, the United Nations, and major corporations. The provisions retained in the new bill allow for the death penalty in cases of so-called “aggravated homosexuality”, a term the government uses to describe actions including having gay sex when HIV-positive.

Transgenders in Kashmir were seen as Matchmakers now Their Lives are in danger

Shabnum Subhan’s house is tucked in the bylanes of Srinagar’s downtown, the most densely populated area of Kashmir’s capital city. In the three-story house, 44-year-old Subhan, who is transgender, is getting ready to visit the house of a prospective groom. While applying kohl in her eyes, she relays how she has struggled to find work in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. Most transgender people like Subhan rely on matchmaking and performing at weddings to earn a living. They are popularly known as menzimyeors (a Kashmiri word for matchmakers). The role of transgender people as matchmakers has ancient roots in the region and is likely formed from the absence of other steady jobs. But Subhan tells LGBTQ Nation that the growing popularity of online dating and the mushrooming of local bands have made it difficult for them to earn a living. Now, the trans community in Kashmir is simultaneously fighting a rise in anti-trans discrimination while also dealing with the fact that their income sources are drying up.

Saudi Arabia surprisingly Allows LGBTQ to Come as Tourists

LGBTQ tourists can now visit Saudi Arabia, according to the kingdom’s official tourism site. The shift follows a series of social and economic changes the kingdom has made recently. Homosexuality, however, remains illegal in the country, though these laws are not always enforced. The Saudi Tourism Authority’s website visitsaudi.com has an updated section under its Frequently Asked Questions page stating “Are LGBT visitors welcome to visit Saudi Arabia?” The answer to the question reads as follows: “We don’t ask anyone to disclose personal details and never have. Everyone is welcome to visit our country.”