So what are Trolls? They are small, adorable and perpetually happy and optimistic doll-like creatures who sing, dance and hug all day. They come in different colors, and have long spikey long hair that forms a rainbow when they are huddled close together.

The Trolls with their rainbow colors remind me of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer plus (LGBTIQ+) community, who are always “gay” no matter what, despite the fact that they have suffered a long history of persecution. While always happy, Trolls also suffer due to their predatory nemesis, the Bergens – gigantic, ugly and mean creatures, who like to eat Trolls once a year, on “Trollstice” day.

The LGBTIQ+ community certainly have more than their fair share of “Bergens” – individuals, groups and institutions, including the state – who discriminate, repress and commit acts of violence against them, not just once a year, but all year round. It’s often done in the name of religion, “morality” or politics, such as the persecution of gays in Nazi Germany, or in Communist Soviet and Cuba.

But the spirit of Pride is resistance. Due to their constant struggle, advocacy and support from allies and human rights groups, the lot of the LGBTIQ+ community has improved significantly albeit unevenly worldwide, and over the past two decades, acceptance has increased.

June is Pride Month, when events are held to raise awareness of the persecution of the gay community. Why June? Because on June 28, 1969, the Stonewall Riots occurred when the police in New York raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay club, which led to six days of rioting. The Stonewall Riots is now commemorated as a catalyst for gay rights all around the world.

May 17 is celebrated yearly as the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOTB). The date was chosen to commemorate the day when the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1990. The concept was originally conceived only as IDAHO (for homophobia) in 2004, while transphobia and biphobia were added on in 2009 and 2015 respectively.

Despite the gains and major changes, there is still a sharp global divide in the acceptance of LGBTIQ+ rights which vary greatly by country, region and economic development. Western Europe and the Americas are generally more accepting (with Sweden and the Netherlands being the highest, at 94 and 92 points respectively on the Pew Survey 2019 Scale) while the rest of the world have lower scores.

Nevertheless, on May 17, 2019 Taiwan was the first Asian country to legalize same-sex marriage, while Pakistan, a staunchly Muslim country, recognized the third gender. In 2009, the Pakistani Supreme Court ordered the issuance of identity cards to people who identify as transgender, transsexual, cross-dresser, etc. They are allowed to express their gender according to their preference. Nine years later, the Transgender Person (Protection of Rights) Act 2018 ensured transgender people’s "fundamental rights to inheritance, education, employment, vote, hold public office, health, assembly, and access to public spaces and property. It confirms that they enjoy all the rights that the nation’s constitution grants to its citizens”.

How does Indonesia fare? Uhm, not great, scoring 9 on the Pew Survey 2019 Scale, meaning only 9 percent of Indonesians accept homosexuality. In fact, it’s been getting increasingly worse, in line with increasing intolerance against minorities in general – one of the symptoms related to the decline of democracy in general in this country.

In 2016 there was a major crackdown on LGBTIQ+ who were “hit by a sudden onslaught of inflammatory hate-filled statements that seem to have risen from hysterical fear and panic” (see my column “State hysteria: Leading the nation with homophobia”, The Jakarta Post, Feb. 24, 2016) and things have not gotten better since.

Recently, there was talk about issuing e-ID cards for transgender people. The director general of population and civil registration, Zudan Arif Fakhrullah, said discriminatory practices should not exist in public services. But in the same breath, he said Indonesia only recognized two genders, male and female, and there was no transgender category. What the…??

So let’s forget about state hypocrisy and look at what the LGBTIQ+ community is doing for itself. There is a gay, transgender and men-who-have-sex with men network called GWL-INA who have 83 community organizations and people living with HIV (PLHIV) spread in 26 provinces (out of 34) across Indonesia. They conduct workshops, training (e.g. on gender and sexual diversity) and support activities.

During these past two months, LGBTIQ+ organizations conducted several events, but they were closed events as there is still much anxiety about being out to the public, for fear that events will be disturbed. Indeed, in the past, LGBTIQ+ events have been subjected to raids and disruptions. Shades of Stonewall, without the riots, as fighting back would lead to even greater repercussions.

There is much need for government support actually. For example, as regards HIV in Indonesia, “human rights groups have warned that the increased discrimination toward key populations has made the AIDS epidemic worse” (see “Forty years on, far too many Indonesians are still dying from AIDS”, the Post, June 8, 2021).

Indonesians are being heavily pressured to be immunized against the new, mysterious and ever mutating coronavirus, using vaccines that were developed at breakneck speed, but no vaccine for HIV/AIDS, which has been around for 40 years? Hello?

In 2022, Indonesia will be subjected to a peer review for their human rights record, which obviously includes LGBTIQ+ rights. The UN Human Rights Council conducts a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) whereby eventually all 193 country members will be reviewed.

The Indonesian government may not  care much about how its own citizens view their record on human rights, if they feel the world is watching (and the UN represents the world, at least governments in the world), then maybe they might try to do something to improve their LGBTIQ+ human rights record, for the sake of their global image. Let’s hope.

Dede Oetomo, founder of GAYa NUSANTARA, the oldest LGBTIQ+ organization in Indonesia, may have some Troll blood in him. Despite the unhappy situation for gay rights in Indonesia, he is optimistic that the movement is making baby steps and that the state is after all, not monolithic. The LGBTIQ+ community does have true allies even within the government.

Will we ever reach Taiwan or at least Pakistan status? It may take a while, but Pride is about resistance and persistence in the face of bigotry and continued discrimination and persecution.

The Trolls theme song says “Don’t be afraid to show off your true colors!”. Seems to me, it’s our politicians and so-called leaders who can “fearlessly” (sic!) show off their true colors!

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The writer is the author of Sex, Power and Nation.