TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Faith that doesn’t discriminate sexuality
Whatever your gender, as long as you are a good person who performs good deeds and don’t harm others, you deserve equal rights, happiness and heaven. #opinion
Change Size
Same-sex marriage supporters take part in a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) pride parade after losing in the marriage equality referendum, in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. (Reuters/Tyrone Siu)
I
t is indeed good news to hear how Taiwan has become the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage after a very long process.
Many of my Taiwanese friends have expressed happiness by changing their social media profile pictures to display rainbow flags or simply posting the news about it. I really wonder what it is that enables Taiwan to uphold equality for its people.
In Southeast Asia, Thailand has become a tourist haven for same-sex couples. Although the country hasn’t legalized same-sex marriage yet, a law criminalizes discrimination against homosexuality or “a person who has a sexual expression different from that person’s original sex”.
Moreover, there have been advocacy campaigns and discussions in the Justice Ministry for civil partnership rights to be legally accepted in Thailand. Many welcome the proposal.
Television series and advertisements that promote the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people are not uncommon in Thailand.
The one thing Taiwan and Thailand share in common that probably explains why they are very welcoming toward diverse sexual expressions is the major faith. According to Pew Research, the religious composition of Taiwan in 2020 is to be dominated by folk religions and Buddhism.
Moreover, even those who believe in other religions still hold on to Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism as their life philosophy. Thailand, meanwhile, is dominated by Buddhism.
