The Thai Cabinet has referred back to Parliament the draft marriage equality bill proposed by the Move Forward Party. The move is seen as a delaying tactic by high level government ministers as there is an ongoing debate about civil partnership for gays as opposed to full marriage. A civil partnership bill received the support of the Cabinet as early as last year, but progress on both versions has stalled in a complex bureaucracy.
The country’s constitutional court ruled last December that full equality for gays would require a change in the law. To limit same sex unions to civil partnership status would mean that some rights would still be denied or ambiguous, for example social security and pension rights, adoption and emergency decisions about terminal care in hospital. The debate about full or partial equality has rumbled on ever since.
On Valentine’s Day, earlier this year, a district registration office in Bangkok actually registered same sex marriages but, of course, the paperwork is not legally binding. Some Buddhist temples have also agreed to perform ceremonies for gay couples, but they are technically blessings without state-sponsored documentation.
Although Thailand has an international reputation for being gay friendly, there is still substantial opposition to any legal changes. The constitutional court, in its decision last December, controversially offered the opinion that gay unions could not offer the same family bonds as heterosexual marriage. Legal discrimination against sexual minorities in employment matters is still a strong disincentive to coming out publicly.
If any legislation is actually passed before the next general election is held (not later than March 2023), observers say it is likely to be the civil union version. However, other macro issues such as the struggling economy could drive the subject off the agenda for the time being. Legal gay rights have not made the same progress in Asia as they have in Europe. Taiwan is the only Asian country currently to have pioneered gay civil unions and then, in 2019, to have legislated for same sex marriage.
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