Thailand's Senate Passes Same-Sex Marriage Law

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Facts

• Thailand is set to become the first Southern Asian country to legalize same-sex marriage after its Senate voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to pass the final reading of a “marriage equality” law.¹
• The bill was approved by the country’s House of Representatives in March, with the support of 405 of the 415 present members. It then passed the Senate Tuesday afternoon by a vote of 130-4, with 18 of the present members abstaining.²
• The bill will officially become law once it is endorsed by King Maha Vajiralongkorn and publicized in the Government Gazette, which will set a date within 120 days for it to take effect. The legislation was notably passed on the first day of the current parliamentary session.³
• Thailand is on its way to joining Nepal and Taiwan as the third Asian jurisdiction to recognize LGBTQ+ marriage. Though, in 2020, the Constitutional Court ruled that laws only recognizing heterosexual marriages were constitutional.⁴
• The new bill defines marriage as a partnership between two individuals over the age of 18, and it gives LGBT+ couples equal rights to adoption, tax allowances, property inheritance, and consent for medical treatment. Initial versions of it were first introduced 20 years ago.⁵
• It also replaces gender-specific terms like “men and women” with words such as “individual” in the Thai Civil and Commercial Code.³

Sources: ¹Reuters, ²Al Jazeera, ³Associated Press, ⁴CNN and ⁵New York Times.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by Guardian. This is a major win for the LGBTQ+ community in a country that has long-prided itself as a haven for equal rights. While Thailand has long been a symbol of acceptance in a hostile area, it took quite a long time for the country to officially legalize same-sex marriage and other LGBTQ+ rights. Nonetheless, this is still cause for celebration, and hopefully, Thailand sets an example for other Asian countries to follow.
• Right narrative, as provided by American Conservative. It must be considered that the encroachment of the West's cultural exportation undoubtedly had an impact on this decision. At the end of the day, US influence guides the economic, social, and diplomatic policies of most countries in the world, and while everyone's rights must be respected, so too should the national cultures and religions of other nations.

Predictions