The 500-member House of Representatives voted in final reading Wednesday in favor of the “marriage equality” bill, which is technically an amendment to the Civil and Commercial Code. After greater than three hours of debate, as many as 400 lawmakers supported the bill, 10 opposed it and five members abstained or didn’t vote.
The bill now goes to the upper house Senate, which is scheduled to contemplate it on April 2. It will then be approved by the King and published within the Royal Gazette. The changes will enter into force 120 days later.
Prime Minister Sretha Thavisin’s administration has hailed the difficulty as a showpiece issue, and supporters say it can also impact Thailand’s status as an LGBTQ-friendly tourist destination.
“It will not take away any rights from men and women, and instead will extend those rights to LGBTQ groups,” said Danuphorn Punnakanta, chairman of the panel of lawmakers who spearheaded the bill. “We are seeking to restore to them the rights they have lost.”
The landmark laws goals to formally change the composition of marriage from “a person and a lady” to “two people” and alter the official legal status from “husband and wife” to “marriage”. The move goes further than attempts by previous Thai administrations, which sought to offer equal rights to same-sex couples by formalizing civil partnerships but kept away from recognizing their marriage.
LGBTQ activists in Thailand have been fighting for greater than a decade for a similar rights to marry as heterosexual couples. Although Thai law has protected LGBTQ people from most kinds of discrimination since 2015, attempts to formalize marriage rights have stalled.
In 2021, the Constitutional Tribunal upheld a law recognizing marriage as exclusively between a person and a lady. Last 12 months, a bill recognizing same-sex partnerships failed to realize parliamentary approval before the elections.
Tourism injection
Legalizing same-sex marriage could even have a positive impact on tourism, which contributes about 12 percent to the nation’s $500 billion economy. In 2019, before the pandemic froze international tourism, LGBTQ travel to Thailand generated about $6.5 billion, or 1.2 percent of gross domestic product, based on industry consultant LGBT Capital.
“This will become an asset for Thailand and increase our strength in the international arena,” Wittaya said. “This will create a nice and safe atmosphere and attract more and more LGBTQ guests. We could also see more marriages between LGBTQ couples, which could generate revenue across industries and local communities.”
Many same-sex couples may also consider returning or moving to Thailand for work, he added.
Nepal advertises itself as an LGBT-friendly country, wanting to develop a “pink economy”
Nepal advertises itself as an LGBT-friendly country, wanting to develop a “pink economy”
“The Marriage Equality Act is just step one. There are many more to come back,” said Danuphorn of the ruling Pheu Thai party.
He added that the bill on gender identity will probably be proposed at the following session of parliament, which is able to begin in July.
