KEEP ON KEEPING ON

Adecade has passed since Thailand initiated its legal fight for the rights of LGBTI people. To commemorate the occasion, local LGBTI, non- binary and civil-society organisations will be hosting an event at Chulalongkorn University tomorrow. Thais began the legal fight for LGBTI rights beginning with a petition to the Administrative Court to change “permanent mental illness” to “gender dysphoria” as a status on the conscription form for transgender people. So, Nov 29 was hailed as the day to celebrate rights and gender diversity in the country. For tomorrow’s event, the theme will focus on the rights and equality in establishing a family for LGBTI people, especially on the much-discussed prospect of same-sex marriage. HE Brian Davidson, British ambassador to Thailand, will give a welcome remark. This will be followed by panel discussions on rights in establishing one’s family. The first topic will focus on the civil partnership bill, which is being criticised as it only addresses certain financial needs of a same-sex couples and does not cover any other aspects of their relationship, thus falling short of the marriage equality many were hoping for. The second topic features an alternative route that people see as the true path to equality, which is to fix the Civil and Commercial Code, Section 1448, or the law that allows only a man and a woman to be married. Both panels will be joined by local LGBTI activists and representatives of the government. In the afternoon, there will be Youth Talk For Change, featuring students, young activists, the founder of Pride CMU, a contestant from Drag Race Thailand and more on the panel. Also, with an election on the horizon, representatives from political parties will also join the event, to hear the opinions of those affected by the marriage law, and where they will present their own visions and viewpoints on this topic. The event will be concluded with a pride parade, starting at 4.30pm, from Chulalongkorn University to Chamchuri Square. The all-day event will be held at Chaloem Rajakumari 60 Building (Chamchuri 10), Room 801, within Chulalongkorn University’s campus, starting at 8.30am. There will also be stalls organised by LGBTI and civil-society organisations available at the venue. A live broadcast will be provided on Prism Digital Magazine’s Facebook page throughout the day.