Homosexuality is a sin: South Korea’s Gay Pride Festival

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Thousands of members of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community from Korea mixed with tourists from around Asia and beyond were hitting the streets for South Korea’s Gay Pride Festival today They demanded better equality in the country after Taiwan last month became the first Asian country to legalize same-sex marriage.

Homosexuality is not illegal in South Korea but the Seoul Western District Court dismissed a bid to allow same-sex marriage in 2016.

Meanwhile, across the street, hundreds of anti-LGBT protesters, mostly from churches, staged a rally and chanted slogans such as “No same-sex marriage” and “Homosexuality is a sin”.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenderย (LGBT) people inย South Koreaย face legal challenges and discrimination not experienced by non-LGBTย residents. Male and female same-sex sexual activity is legal inย South Korea, butย marriageย or other forms of legal partnership are not available to same-sex partners.

Homosexuality in South Korea is not specifically mentioned in either theย South Korean Constitutionย or in the Civil Penal Code. Article 31 of theย National Human Rights Commission Actย states that “no individual is to be discriminated against on the basis of his or her sexual orientation”. However, Article 92 of the Military Penal Code, which is currently under a legal challenge, singles out sexual relations between members of the same sex as “sexual harassment”, punishable by a maximum of one year in prison. The Military Penal Code does not make a distinction betweenย consensualย andย non-consensual crimesย and names consensual intercourse between homosexual adults as “reciprocal rape” (Hangul)

But aย military courtย ruled in 2010 that this law is illegal, saying that homosexuality is a strictly personal issue. This ruling was appealed to South Korea’sย Constitutional Court, which has not yet made a decision.

Transgender people are allowed to undergoย sex reassignment surgeryย in South Korea after the age of 20, and can change their gender information on official documents.ย Harisuย is South Korea’s first transgender entertainer, and in 2002 became only the second person in South Korea toย legally change gender.

General awareness of homosexuality remained low among the Korean public until recently, with increased awareness and debate coming to the issue, as well as gay-themed entertainment in mass media and recognizable figures and celebrities, such asย Hong Seok-cheon,ย coming outย in public. But gay and lesbian Koreans still face difficulties at home and work, and many prefer not to reveal their identities to their family, friends or co-workers.

However, awareness of issues facing LGBT South Koreans has gradually risen, and polls have shown that solid majorities of South Koreans support laws that protect LGBT people from discrimination, including in employment, housing and public accommodations.

In August 2017, theย Supreme Courtย ordered the Government to allow “Beyond the Rainbow”, an LGBT rights foundation, to register as a charity with theย Ministry of Justice. Without official registration, the foundation was unable to receive tax-deductible donations and operate in full compliance with the law.

ย Additionally, the South Korean Government voted in favor of a 2014ย United Nationsย resolution aimed at overcoming discrimination against LGBT people.

About the author

Avatar of Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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