Marriage Equality Bill Headed To Parliament In Thailand
Sretta Thavisin, Thailand’s Prime Minister has just announced that his Cabinet has approved a bill on marriage equality for the Asian nation. The marriage equality bill is slated to head to parliament next month, where it will be heard and debated by officials. If approved, this will position Thailand as the first nation in the Southeast Asian region to legalize same-sex marriage.
Thailand has long been known for its active and vibrant LGBTQ community. As recently as 2021, Thailand’s constitutional court ruled that the country’s already existing marriage law, which officially recognized marriage as between heterosexual couples only, would remain in place. However, the same ruling advised parliament to prepare additional laws that would somehow extend legal rights to the country’s queer population.
Just two years later, it seems they’re changing track. A spokesperson for the Thai government announced at a press briefing on Tuesday that the proposed amendment to the Civil and Commercial Code would replace terms like “men and women” and “husband and wife” which would open up the concept of marriage to same-sex couples and other queer unions.
This marriage equality bill comes as a surprise because, since his appointment in August, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has avoided other controversial issues up for debate, and has instead focussed on reviving the domestic economy and attracting foreign investment.
The Prime Minister has said that he has high hopes that Thailand can host the WorldPride event in 2028, which definitely will not happen while marriage equality is not legal in the country.
He took to the X app back in October to foreshadow this week’s events and said “I believe that everyone should be entitled to equal rights, regardless of their gender.”
When it comes to Asian nations, so far only Nepal and Taiwan have legalized same-sex marriages for their queer populations, so this will be a huge step forward for the region.
Watch this space as more information comes to light in December about this monumental change for Thailand’s queer people.
