ASEAN Has More Work to Do on LGBT Rights

Posted by AsiaViews | Oct 9, 2017 | 0 |

MYANMAR

Myanmar Times

Oct 2, 2017

ASEAN members have different standards and laws in dealing with the LGBT community, which includes lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand are among the most liberal when it comes to LGBT issues.

In Vietnam, the LGBT community enjoys more freedom than any other country in ASEAN. The government lifted a ban on same sex marriage in 2015 and is trying to end all forms of discrimination in the workplace and the rest of society.

However, one of the biggest problems is in the home, as many families still try to hide their children’s sexual preferences.

In comparison, Indonesia has stringent laws against the LGBT community due to its Islamic teachings and practices. Other Muslim countries such as Malaysia and Brunei hold similar values. Same-sex couples are not entitled to sign any legal documents or receive the same legal protection as different-sex married couples.

Early last year, LGBT people faced fierce opposition and verbal attacks in Jakarta. Indonesian authorities were also implicated in hate speeches that said LGBT rights are intolerable in Islamic society. Many human rights organizations have urged the Indonesian government to defend LGBT rights and publicly condemn officials who make discriminatory remarks.

Sodomy is criminalized and carries jail terms in Malaysia. In 1998, former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim was imprisoned on charges of sodomy brought by his political opponents.

The Philippines is another country with a very liberal attitude toward LGBT people and is one of the most gay-friendly countries in the world. However, some members of its community still cannot find jobs easily due to discrimination in the workplace.

When it comes to Thailand, the LGBT community is the most active and dynamic and includes all kinds of sexual orientation. Prof Vittit Muntrabhorn, a leading Thai human rights lawyer, recently said that five key steps are needed to end discrimination and violence against the LGBT community.

He said these include lifting criminal laws that affect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, and no longer seeing members of this community as suffering from a disorder.

Other key steps include giving all people the right to have their gender identity recognized on official documents, working with different cultures and religions to ensure inclusion, and ensuring children grow up with the ability to empathize with people of different sexual orientations and gender identity, according to Vittit.

ASEAN needs to get rid of this discrimination in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. Its members still have a lot of work to do to eliminate violence and discrimination against the LGBT community.

Under the Philippines chair, it is hoped that ASEAN will give this issue high priority when discussing human rights.

(https://www.mmtimes.com/news/asean-has-more-work-do-lgbt-rights.html)

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EXTRICATING NDONESIAN CHILDREN FROM ISIS INFLUENCE ABROAD

Indonesia urgently needs to revisit the possibility of repatriating the neediest of its young citizens stranded abroad, whose families had earlier joined ISIS. Most of these children are in camps in northern Syria but there are also small numbers in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq. “Extricating Indonesian Children from ISIS Influence Abroad”, the latest report from the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) argues that the government could begin by bringing back small groups of unaccompanied children under ten years of age, who pose minimal security risk and are most vulnerable to deteriorating conditions in the camps.“The problem is that health and security conditions are worsening by the day in the Syrian camps, and the children are growing older,” says Dyah Kartika, IPAC analyst. “They need access to schools, a nurturing environment, and medical attention. If the government waits too long, the children will be further exposed to ISIS ideology.” The new report examines a 2019 list of Indonesians in camps and prisons run by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Indonesian government has been trying to verify their citizenship, but with pseudonyms, misspellings and bad transliterations, it is a daunting task. At the time the data was collected, between March and June 2019, there were 555 Indonesians in SDF camps and prisons, including 367 children. Among the children, approximately 277 were under the age of ten and 34 were unaccompanied. In June 2021, there are fewer than ten children who are both unaccompanied and under the age of ten that could be prioritized for return. Bringing back children of ISIS families is no easy task. The report analyses the main challenges faced by the Indonesian government. These include definitional issues, bureaucratic competition, the difficulty of verifying nationality, evaluating the toll of exposure to conflict, assessing security risk, and finding relatives or others willing to provide care once the children are returned. In addition, COVID has meant stringent restrictions on travel, placing further obstacles in the way of repatriation. There are several models for rehabilitation of children exposed to violent extremism in Indonesia that could be modified to accommodate the needs of children repatriated from abroad. The report examines these models and argues that the government does not need to have every detail of rehabilitation programs in place before it starts extricating children from ISIS influence. It can start by bringing back the most vulnerable children and then modify programs as needed.

“It’s important that the government see these children as victims” says Dyah. “They deserve a chance to be children again.”

ASEAN Has More Work to Do on LGBT Rights