Systemic stigmatization and discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community in the Middle East

26/03/2023
Original: French
Written by: Mathilde Verrier
Translated by: Lisa Selmadji

Despite growing claims for the recognition and acquisition of rights as well as for the protection of LGBTQIA+ persons worldwide, homosexual relationships are still, even today, criminalized in 69 countries. In 11 countries, they are punishable by death. Considered immoral or unnatural, same-sex relationships are treated as a crime, and this, mainly in the Middle East region. The recent report by the NGO Human Rights Watch^[1]Human Rights Watch. (2023). All This Terror Because of a Photo. Digital Targeting and Its Offline Consequences for LGBT People in the Middle East and North Africa. [Toute cette terreur à cause … Continue reading, published on the 21st February 2023, stresses the urgency and need for action in favour of LGBTQIA+ citizens in these regions, in particular denouncing online tracking practices. In some countries, to obtain a sentence, sometimes even a death penalty, politicians are suspected of using social media to track and target homosexual men in particular, in order to gather evidence and secure a seemingly justified conviction. How to explain the stigmatization and persisting discriminations against LGBTQIA+ persons in the Middle East countries?

A several political and legal framework, conducive to violence towards LGBTQIA+ communities

Although in the view of some Middle East countries’ governments there is a difference between male and female sexuality, all members of the LGBTQIA+ community are under threat. Female homosexuality is legal in the Palestinian territory ad in Kuwait. In Bahrain, Cyprus, Israel, Jordan and Turkey, all sexual orientations are recognized as legal. In Israel, the legislation guarantees equal rights, equal privileges, equal adoption rights as well as equal employment opportunities to homosexual persons^[2]Ministery of Foreign Affairs. (2021). Israel Experience, Gay Israel. [Expérience d’Israël. Gay Israël]. https://www.gov.il/en/Departments/General/gay-israel..

However, acceptance of these multiple sexual orientations does not create any rights in most other countries. In Kuwait, Egypt, Oman, Lebanon and Syria, homosexuality is considered illegal and is punishable by imprisonment. This is in particular the case in the Syrian criminal code as article 520 condemns “unnatural sexual intercourse^[3]Human Rights Watch. (2018). L’audace face à l’adversité. Activisme en faveur des droits LGBT au Moyen-Orient et en Afrique du Nord. … Continue reading”, and article 517 punishes “crimes “against public decency” that are carried out in public with imprisonment of three months to three years^[4]Human Rights Watch. (2018). L’audace face à l’adversité. Activisme en faveur des droits LGBT au Moyen-Orient et en Afrique du … Continue reading”. These articles apply to all citizens but LGTQIA+ people are particularly targeted. Homosexuality is considered as a crime in Lebanon, and any same-sex sexual activity can lead to up to one year of imprisonment.

It is in Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates that the situation is the worst as people convicted of homosexual crimes are punishable by death. In the United Arab Emirates it is provided for in its federal criminal code; article 354 provides that “whoever rapes a woman or commits sodomy with a man shall be punished by the death penalty”^[5]Une conférence sur les droits LGBT+ aux Émirats arabes unis, un pays LGBTphobe. (7 Janvier 2021). Komitid. … Continue reading”. Based on the Sharia, this criminal system is violent against citizens engaged in non-heterosexual sexual activity on the Emirates territory.

In this region, the way trans people are treated is widely criticized. If the recognition of all sexual orientations faces many legal constraints, the gender expression and the recognition of trans or non-binary persons is far from being accepted. In all the countries of the Middle East, except in Israel, no other gender than female and male is recognized. In this country, any violent act against a LGBTQIA+ person is considered as a crime. According to reports by numerous associations and by the Israeli government, Israel “is one of the most inclusive societies in the world for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community”^[6]Ministery of Foreign Affairs. (2021). Israel Experience, Gay Israel. [Expérience d’Israël. Gay Israël]. https://www.gov.il/en/Departments/General/gay-israel. ».  In 2020, Human Rights Watch published a repor^[7]Human Rights Watch. (2020). They Treated Us in Monstrous Ways. Sexual Violence Against Men, Boys, and Transgender Women in the Syrian Conflict. [Ils nous ont traités comme des monstres. Les … Continue reading on violence against homosexual persons in Syria, and notably about torture practices led by State actors or private individuals against trans citizens, in particular women and young girls. They are “disproportionately targeted by sexual violence linked to conflicts”^[8]Human Rights Watch. (2020). They Treated Us in Monstrous Ways. Sexual Violence Against Men, Boys, and Transgender Women in the Syrian Conflict. [Ils nous ont traités comme des monstres. Les … Continue reading. Only a few countries accept citizens whatever their sexual orientation, and even fewer grant them legal recognition and legitimate rights. In most Middle East countries, this is not the case.

Policies and laws set into place regarding homosexual persons and all sexual minorities are, in these countries, the primary factors of exposure to violence. Numerous discriminations are committed against those whose sexual and gender practices and performance are not in line with the standards established by religion and the society. This is particularly a reality in Iran, where various actors, State actors as well as private individuals within the restricted circles of family or of the workplace, are the torturers, to varying degrees, of LGBTQIA+ community members. Harassment, detention, arrests and torture are common practices used against homosexual men and women and trans persons. Moreover, conversion therapies are still allowed and promoted by the Islamic State, as well as flogging and the death penalty. These inhuman acts have disastrous consequences for these persons and constitute violations of their liberties and security. Although condemnable under international law, these States are nonetheless not subjected to sanctions by international tribunals.

The Maha Al Mutairi case in particular raised awareness because it highlighted the measures taken against those who break the law about transidentity. This young woman was arrested by a criminal court in Kuwait. Her crime? Breaking the 2014 law on communications and article 198 of the Criminal code; two legal texts in which is mentioned the prohibition “to imitate the other sex in any manner”^[9]Amnesty International. (2021). Koweït 2021. https://www.amnesty.org/fr/location/middle-east-and-north-africa/kuwait/report-kuwait/.. Sentenced to two years of imprisonment, in a men’s prison, the case of this trans woman perfectly exemplifies the total lack of consideration of the Kuwaiti tribunals and government and demonstrates their violence. In this country, although female homosexuality is legal, no other gender identity than male or female is recognized nor authorized.

Egypt also has been the theatre of increased repression against trans persons. In 2017, the presence of rainbow flags at a concert shook the Egyptian political scene. There followed dozens of arrests of LGBTQIA+ community members led by the local police^[10]El Massassi, A. (05 Octobre 2017). En Égypte, répression accrue contre la communauté homosexuelle. L’orient-Le-Jour. … Continue reading. These arrests jeopardized the protection of homosexual and trans citizens across the country. The report published by Human Rights Watch in 2020 confirmed this reality^[11]Human Right Watch, (2020). Sexual Violence Against Men in Syria: Daily Brief. [Violences sexuelles contre les hommes en Syrie : résumé quotidien]. … Continue reading. Testimonies included in the report shed light on acts of “mutilations, electric shocks, beatings, burnings to the genital organs, rape or forced nudity”^[12]Burrel, R. (30 Juin 2020). État Islamique, Syrie : les homosexuels et les personnes trans harcelées, violés et mutilés par différents camps. Têtu. … Continue reading against prisoners.

If the Universal Declaration of Human Rights reminds in its first article that “All humans are born free and equal in dignity and rights”^[13]United Nations Department of Public Information, United Nations. (n. d.). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. … Continue reading, it appears that this does not in reality apply to all. And if several Middle East countries like Iran, Iraq, Egypt or Lebanon^[14]Perspective Monde (n. d.). 7 décembre 1948. Adoption de la Déclaration universelle des droits de l’Homme. https://perspective.usherbrooke.ca/bilan/servlet/BMEve/490 are signatory to this Declaration, national laws prevail over international law. Thus, an analysis of the legal positions and of the unstable political contexts in those countries, demonstrates the necessity to advocate for LGBTQIA+ persons’ rights. The hostility of national legal systems and governments towards sexual and gender affirmation of all is one of the primary factors of violence towards LGBTQIA+ persons across the Middle East region.

The strengthening of discriminations through conservative and masculinist religious and political discourses

Several countries are governed by political systems within which there is no effective separation between religion and the State. The case of Lebanon is interesting as its political functioning is based on the confessionalism model. Within this political regime, each function is attributed to a member of a confession, in proportion to the prevalence of each religion within the society. The religious affiliation of each member of the government is thus part of the political sphere. Proximity between the organization of the State and its position on LGBQIA+ persons’ recognition can be observed. The nature of the political regime can have consequences on the acquisition of certain rights for gender and sexual minorities.

The Iranian political functioning illustrates this ambiguity between politic and religious power. As inscribed within its Constitution, the Islamic Republic of Iran based its institutions on Islamic law, and revolves around the theocratic principles of Islam. It is in particular specified in the Constitutional text that “the principal mission devoted to the Guardian Council (Shorā-ye negahbān-e qānune assāssi), made up of faghihs (Islamic jurisprudents) and legal scholars, is to assure the compatibility of any legislation adopted by the Assembly with the constitution and with Islamic criteria »^[15]Alhoda. (2010). La Constitution De La République Islamique de l’Iran. http://www.ebrahimemad.net/as-iran/la-constitution-de-la-republique-islamique-d-iran.pdf.. These representatives of the religion within the political system therefore have input in the decision-making process and in the sanctioning of anyone who does not respect the values enshrined in the Constitution.

Atahualpa Amerise, a Spanish academic, specifies, about the Koran, that “from Iranian ayatollahs to the Saudi Grand Mufti, they all see homosexuality as a crime against the norms of Islam and that must be severely punished”^[16]Amerise, A. (15 Décembre 2022). Ce que dit le Coran sur l’homosexualité et pourquoi elle est punie dans le monde musulman. BBC New Afrique. https://www.bbc.com/afrique/articles/c512xzw6zldo. ». Anyone with an unconventional – according to their sacred texts – gender identity or sex orientation, is therefore marginalized within the society and in permanent insecurity. Yemen and Saudi Arabi also are in this case^[17]((Observatoire des Inégalités. (2022). Dans 69 pays sur 193, l’homosexualité est interdite. https://www.inegalites.fr/Dans-69-pays-sur-193-l-homosexualite-est-interdite. ».

Moreover, the patriarchal system as a social organization in which the man has all the powers, and takes dominance in any interaction, within the family as well as outside of it, is prevalent within countries of the Middle East. There ensues an organization of the family and of the society, deemed classic or ideal, in which each individual’s place is determined according to its gender and sexual orientation. However, the persons who do not have a gender identity or sexual orientation that fit into this model are not only rejected, but in certain cases punished, or even killed. The longevity of the patriarchal system in the Middle East can be seen in the maintenance of power by men and, in some countries, by heredity of the power. Conservative ideologies tend to maintain this longevity of the patriarchy as permanent. Demonstrations of citizens opposed to it are severely repressed by the security forces.

Religion therefore is one of the main factors that explain this persistency of stigmatization. If the Koran does not explicitly condemn homosexuality, the way Islam is interpreted and taught in the Koranic schools demonstrates the negative impact religion can have towards the LGBTQIA+ community. Today, a sexual act between two people of the same sex is more punishable than adultery^[18]Amerise, A. (15 Décembre 2022). Ce que dit le Coran sur l’homosexualité et pourquoi elle est punie dans le monde musulman. BBC New Afrique. https://www.bbc.com/afrique/articles/c512xzw6zldo., in the national legal texts as well as in the sacred texts. The historian Gerardo Ferrara, a specialist of the Middle East and Islam, explains for BBC Mundo that in the Sunna – one of the main sources for Islamic jurisprudence – “homosexuality is likened to adultery. It is a crime called hadd and which is usually punished by the death penalty, in the most serious cases, or by the whip”^[19]Amerise, A. (15 Décembre 2022). Ce que dit le Coran sur l’homosexualité et pourquoi elle est punie dans le monde musulman. BBC New Afrique. https://www.bbc.com/afrique/articles/c512xzw6zldo .. The Islamic jurisprudence condemns any sexual intercourse outside of the sacred and divine links of marriage; and by sexual intercourse they mean sexual intercourse other than heterosexual. Claiming themselves to be the representatives of God on earth, numerous Islamic legal scholars interpret the sacred text’s verses arbitrarily.

Also, if several hints can be spotted in the Koran, such as the prohibition of sodomy between two persons of the same sex or the obligation to marry a person of the opposite sex in order to procreate, it dictates no punishments or retributions. Men got hold of a sacred text to back their religious power, and justify, in the name of god, this violence. This construction of violence as justified by religion can be observed in Iran, in Syria, or in Saudi Arabia, that “could use the death penalty, although it is not explicitly mentioned in the law”^[20]Observatoire des Inégalités. (2022). Dans 69 pays sur 193, l’homosexualité est interdite. https://www.inegalites.fr/Dans-69-pays-sur-193-l-homosexualite-est-interdite. to punish homosexual relations. However, it is important to note that it is always the persons from the minority communities that pay the price, be it a gender minority, or a sexual, ethnic or religious one.

One of the most common measures and one of the most criminal is the tracking of homosexual men or women on social media or dating sites. The persons using these apps, answering a proposition get entrapped by police officers who pose as members of the LGBTQIA+ community on dating websites. From violent repressions at the meeting points, to arrests, and tortures at the police stations, there are lots of victims. The five countries in which such practices have been documented are Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Tunisia. The testimonies of the victims are chilling^[21]Human Rights Watch. (2023). All This Terror Because of a Photo. Digital Targeting and Its Offline Consequences for LGBT People in the Middle East and North Africa. [Toute cette terreur à cause … Continue reading and illustrate the persistency of State hostility towards members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Here, no legal framework is set into place by the States; it is only a kind of “track” and an outbreak of violence.

The impossible defence of LGBTQIA+ community members’ rights because of societal invisibilisation and state repression

For a report published in 2019, Mélanie Houé, a freelance journalist in Lebanon, collected several testimonies which show the difficulty for homosexual and trans persons to come out. Fear of exclusion is all the more difficult to address as rejection does often happen at the time of confession. Within the family circle, lots of them are confronted with deep contempt from their closed ones. This happened to Eli, a young Lebanese homosexual, whose testimony was collected by Mélanie Houé. He confides, explaining: “My brother does not accept it, as for my sister, she does not leave me alone with my niece anymore. She is afraid that I will sexually abuse her”^[22]Houé, Mélanie. (17 Mai 2019). La difficile dépénalisation de l’homosexualité au Liban. Middle East Eye. … Continue reading”. The harshness of rejection from certain members of one’s family is common; numerous LGBTQIA+ persons were confronted with similar reactions after their coming out. Eli’s words, spoken during an interview for a British journal in 2022, echo those of Nas Mohamed, a Qatari doctor, and first Qatari national to make his coming out: “I thought about the risk that someone discover it. I told myself I’d be killed if someone knew”^[23]Ravier-Regnat, S. (23 Mai 2022). Homophobie. Je me suis dit que je serais tué si quelqu’un savait : un Qatari parle de son homosexualité à visage découvert, une première. Libération. … Continue reading ». The risk to be discovered is multiplied, as LGBTQIA+ citizens already have to hide their own sexuality. Testimonies shared by the journalists to highlight the dangers faced by members of the LGBQIA+ community in the Middle East region perfectly illustrate the harshness of the situation.

And this fear is permanently compounded by a lack of evolution in public attitudes and opinion and general conformism within the society. Sexualities or gender orientations other than heterosexuality and cis-identity are made completely invisible in the Middle East. Systematic vagueness around the actual existence of LGBTQIA+ persons is maintained, including by these persons as a way of protecting themselves, which tends to render this community completely invisible. The politicians also participate in making the LGBTQIA+ community invisible, and this may take some form of anti-propaganda. Furthermore, the culture can serve as an efficient way of maintaining this general lack of information. This happened in Saudi Arabia in April 2022. The State required the suppression of a scene, in a Disney movie, in which you could see two moms^[24]Borne, T. (27 Mai 2022). L’Arabie saoudite exige le retrait d’une « référence LGBTQ » d’un film Disney. La Croix. … Continue reading.

Such allusions not being authorised, the persons who are concerned will not know to whom to identify themselves. The elimination of any allusion to LGBTQIA+ issues sustains the lack of knowledge and consequently the rejection of this community. Signs of openness are not numerous and strongly restricted by the authorities. The Saudi State has full powers to control its population. This is mainly done through censorship of certain references. Such conformism in the Middle East states reinforces the stigma against LGBTQIA+ persons and reinforces the multiple discriminations they are subjected to.

Moreover, the complexity of defending the LGBTQIA+ community member’s human rights in the Middle East is unparalleled. Freedom of expression and freedom of assembly are not guaranteed in many Middle East countries, and these fundamental rights are sometimes repressed by violence and incarceration. In Kuwait, in 2021, many activists were apprehended and arrested for criticizing the government, or for their responsibility in militant activities in favour of minorities’ rights such as LGBTQIA+ citizens’ rights. For these people “the right of peaceful assembly as a tool to bring about change has not faltered and (…) they will not be cowed by authorities’ brutality”^[25]Amnesty International. (2021). Moyen-Orient et Afrique du Nord. Dix ans après les soulèvements massifs de 2011, la répression et la violence n’ont pas eu raison du militantisme arabe. … Continue reading. The freedom of expression being one of the most adequate ways to gain rights, it must be defended against conservative regimes. Democracy therefore seems to be a guarantee for securing LGBTQIA+ rights.

In February 2023, protests continued in Israel for the protection of each minorities’ rights, including the LGBTQIA+ community’s rights. The Israeli parliament has a project to reform the justice system and obtain full powers. This reform revolves around the “implementation of proposals that could transform Israel into a State into which there would be, in practice, only one branch of government, as the Knesset and the executive are already under the control of the coalition”^[26]8 doyens d’universités de droit fustigent la réforme judiciaire de Yariv Levin. (8 Janvier 2023). The Times of Israël. … Continue reading. This reform is an obstacle to the freedom of the Supreme Court^[27]Israël: les manifestations contre les plans du gouvernement pour la justice continuent. (20 Février 2023). RFI. … Continue reading, and would allow conservative personalities to lead a more restrictive policy in terms of LGBTQIA+ persons’ rights. Some members of the government expressed their contempt for the advancement of LGBTQIA+ persons’ rights on the Israeli territory. In 2022, Simcha Rothma, a member of the Knesset, declared that LGBTQIA+ persons could be refused the right to rent a hotel room. That same year, deputy Orit Strook, a member of the Atid Eha party, mentioned the possibility for doctors to refuse any medical act for persons who wanted to change sex^[28]En Israël, une future ministre propose que les médecins puissent refuser de soigner les personnes LGBT. (27 Décembre 2022). L’OBS. … Continue reading. And this, despite the guaranty given by Benjamin Netanyahou, who had assured that “no harm would be done to LGBT persons or to the rights of any citizen in Israel”^[29]En Israël, une future ministre propose que les médecins puissent refuser de soigner les personnes LGBT. (27 Décembre 2022). L’OBS. … Continue reading. Thus, although the country is today considered as the most open and protective of sexual and gender minorities in the region, this reform could open the way for an alliance between conservative parties opposed to the recognition of rights to LGBTQIA+ persons’ rights. The protection of the Supreme Court on everyone’s rights would not be effective anymore. The current political situation in Israel allows us to understand that even in countries where rights seem protected, they remain fragile and the system that protect these rights, particularly vulnerable.

In the Middle East region, politicians are the only holders of power. Consequences for the rights of LGBTQIA+ citizens are tremendous. But if fear is one of the causes of the absence of any real movement for the promotion of the LGBTQIA+ community members’ rights, many testimonies bring a little bit of hope. Gathered by Human Rights Watch in 2018, an important number of persons in the Middle East and North Africa affirmed their determination to assert their rights: “They share their stories, build alliances, establish networks across borders, develop national and regional movements and adopt creative means to fight against homophobia and transphobia”^[30]Human Rights Watch. (2018). L’audace face à l’adversité. Activisme en faveur des droits LGBT au Moyen-Orient et en Afrique du Nord. … Continue reading. 

Waiting for measures for the recognition of and equality of rights for everyone

The Middle East is one of the least opened regions in terms of recognition of the rights and existence of members of the LGBTQIA+ community. As a consequence of this violation of human rights, those concerned are strongly stigmatized and exposed to discriminations, physical as well as moral. If in the Middle East the rights of each citizen are not, as of today, acquired in many countries, nor respected in others, civilian advocacy continues.

The statements in this article are the sole responsibility of the author.

To quote this article : VERRIER Mathilde, “Systemic stigmatization and discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community in the Middle East”, 16/03/2023, Gender in Geopolitics Institute, https://igg-geo.org/?p=14685&lang=en