FACTBOX - The 10 legal hurdles LGBT+ people still face

Wednesday, 20 March 2019 00:00 GMT

People belonging to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community celebrate after the Supreme Court's verdict of decriminalizing gay sex and revocation of the Section 377 law, at an NGO in Mumbai, India, September 6, 2018. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas

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India and Angola legalised same-sex relations in 2018, while Chad criminalised gay sex

By Hugo Greenhalgh

LONDON, March 20 (Openly) - It is still a crime to have same-sex relations in 68 countries, according to a global review published on Wednesday by the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA).

Since the ILGA's last review in 2017, India and Angola have legalised same-sex relations, while Chad moved to criminalise gay sex that year, the report's author Lucas Ramon Mendos told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Here are 10 key points.

1. Gay sex between adults is legal in 123 of the 193 member states of the United Nations.

2. Six countries retain the death penalty for consensual same-sex sexual acts.

3. Another 26 nations impose maximum penalties for same-sex sexual relations of between 10 years and life imprisonment.

4. There are 32 U.N. member states with laws that restrict freedom of expression on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity, including bans on the promotion of homosexuality.

5. The establishment or registration of organisations representing gay, lesbian or bisexual people face legal hurdles in 41 countries.

6. Workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is outlawed in 73 nations.

7. Nine countries enshrine protection against discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation within their constitutions.

8. Same-sex marriage is legal in 26 U.N. member states. A total of 27 have some form of recognition, including civil partnerships, for same-sex couples.

9. Same-sex second parents can legally adopt in 30 countries, while 27 allow joint adoption.

10. Hate crimes on the basis of sexual orientation are illegal in 42 nations, while acts of incitement to hatred, discrimination or violence are criminalised in 39.

Source: The ILGA State-Sponsored Homophobia Report 2019

(Reporting by Hugo Greenhalgh @hugo_greenhalgh; Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters that covers humanitarian news, women's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, property rights, and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)

Openly is an initiative of the Thomson Reuters Foundation dedicated to impartial coverage of LGBT+ issues from around the world.

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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