LGBT movement making inroads in Vietnam

HANOI — Vietnam has become an unusual leader for gay rights in Southeast Asia this year. Lawmakers lifted a ban on same-sex marriage in a new law that took effect on New Year’s Day.

The move was surprising even for activists in Vietnam, who have seen the movement for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) gain ground in recent years.

Activists said the LGBT movement has come out of the closet and become a more mainstream human rights issue, according to head of the local minority rights institute iSEE Le Quang Binh.

It has entered public debate, been given airtime by Vietnam’s mostly state-controlled media and debated at the National Assembly.

In late 2014, Vietnam repealed a law banning same-sex marriage. The new law does not recognise nor protect same-sex couples, but the move is widely seen as an official, and surprising, nod to the LGBT community.

“Only five years ago, I think none of us thought about working with the law, changing the law. We were only discussing (how to address) stigma and discrimination,” said Dr Hoang Tu-Anh, director of Centre for Creative Initiatives in Health and Population.

Dr Tu-Anh’s organisation is one of several non-government organisations behind The Cabinet, an exhibition on the hidden lives, loves and struggles of LGBT people in Vietnam.

The event ran for a month at the Vietnam University of Fine Arts in Hanoi this March, with funding by UNESCO and the Swedish government.

The exhibition title was a play on the dozens of white veneer-and-glass cabinets on display, each one holding a selection of personal items telling the life stories of their LGBT owners, including a well-preserved invitation to a same-sex wedding, a ragged teddy bear, sparkling over-the-top costume jewellery and hormone pills.

The exhibition saw 100 visitors a day on average, mostly young people, but some in their 40s and 50s, said organisers.

The organisers had the idea as early as 2010, but had problems getting partners or sufficient funding. No museum in Hanoi could or would host the exhibition, until the University of Fine Arts agreed.

A number of exhibits had to be taken down days before the opening, however. Organisers said the pressure came from different sources.

These “stories that cannot be told”, as they are labelled in the exhibition’s empty cabinets and frames, point to censorship and restriction for rights groups that fight for diversity and tolerance, said Dr Tu-Anh.

“Because I think in Vietnam it is not about being homosexual, it is about being different. If you are disabled you also meet with discrimination,” he said.

‘NOT A CITY CONCEPT’

From Hanoi, Luong The Huy and Pham Ngoc Nam head to the far-flung corners of Vietnam on motorbike to find LGBT people, to show it is not just a “city concept” or a result of foreign influence. They have plans for a book and documentary at the end of the road trip.

“I used to say LGBT are everywhere and they can be anyone, but I didn’t have the evidence to show that,” said Mr Huy, a gay activist.

Mr Nam is straight, and described himself an LGBT “ally”.

“Straight men always say they’re strong. They’re supposed to protect the weak, right? So I’m just doing my job,” he explained.

Mr Nam and Mr Huy are part of a young, educated, and growing number of city dwellers who are pushing the envelope of what conservative Vietnam is willing to accept.

Recent inroads by LGBT groups into the country’s social consciousness is widely seen as a collective success for Vietnam civil society as a whole, said sociologist Dr De Bach Duong.

“The example of the LGBT movement shows that if different social groups have a serious agenda, know how to work with the government, how to mobilise support from society, then their voice will be heard and their agenda will be taken seriously by government and society,” he explained.

But in a political system where rules are not clear and change often, it is uncertain how many more can follow their lead. CHANNEL NEWSASIA