Land Of Lady Boys? Thailand Is Not The LGBTI Paradise It Appears

[Martina]

Yesterday I walked to the local shopping centre in Chiang Mai where I live. I wore a nice dress, low heels and took an umbrella for the inevitable rain shower at this time of year. I looked for something new, unsuccessfully, in a clothes shop and had a coffee at Starbucks and then went home. No one stopped me, no one threatened me or tried to make fun of me. That has been the pattern for the last 20 years that I have been living in Thailand and as a generalisation, it is mostly the LGBTI paradise that people, including me, claim I feel much more vulnerable in Australia and like many avoid going out except to organised functions.

I worked at a university in Bangkok for three years and TG students, both male and female, were there in numbers and dressed in the university uniform according to their gender preferences. There was talk of making some toilets unisex but that idea was considered an unnecessary step. (I remember once getting in a lift with a pretty girl whose deep voice belied my expectations!) The only downside came from outside the university, when a royal edict was issued saying that if a member of the royal family was handing out degrees, graduates were to dress according to their birth gender.

Nevertheless, the article is correct in stating that there is no legal framework to protect LGBTI people from random discrimination or for them to establish their preferred identity. Society is largely on-side but government authorities are slow to follow. There were rumours that the new Constitution, a product of the last coup, would address this issue; I have read the English translation and although it loosely calls for equal rights of expression it does not talk about specific groups of people. Therefore, I wish all LGBTI activists every success in getting the appropriate legislation passed. This may be a big ask as Thailand is currently ruled by a very conservative military dictatorship with little hope of anything approaching a true democracy for many years to come. Elections will be held next year, but the latest constitution ensures the military junta will never lose control.

Tomorrow evening, I am going out to meet my friend, Cathy, for coffee and a chat; but I will not be fearful.

[Deleted User]

I can’t pass any comment on the overall situation there but regard this paragraph, (redacted to save room)
‘Kath Khangpiboon suffering discrimination when she lost her teaching job at Thammasat University.
She was informed she was “no longer suitable” to teach because of inappropriate behaviour on social media, referring to a post on Kath’s Instagram account featuring a photo of a penis-shaped tube of lipstick.

I think that would happen anywhere and has certainly happened here.

[Martina]

Claire, you are absolutely right.

Putting things into perspective, back in March, the Central Administrative Court ruled that Thammasat University had no right to fire Kath and gave them 60 days to reinstate her, although she did not get the monetary compensation she wanted. She is working there now. See article below:

The Nation report

Last night, I met with my friend, Cathy, for coffee and mentioned the Kath story. It was she who told me that Kath had been reinstated as a lecturer at the university. Cathy confirmed that Thailand continues to be a TG paradise for her, as it does for me. Journalists and their editors have a talent for publishing articles that make alarmist generalisations and we should be wary of taking them too seriously.

[Deleted User]

Martina wrote:

Journalists and their editors have a talent for publishing articles that make alarmist generalisations and we should be wary of taking them too seriously.

Nooooo……really? Our press is so unbiased and …..noo… can’t say that with a strait face. {Fairfax notwithstanding)