Vietnam surprises gay activists with plan to legalise same-sex marriages

Dinh Thi Hong Loan grasps her girlfriend’s hand, and the two gaze into each other’s eyes. Smiling, they talk about their wedding – how they’ll exchange rings and toast the beginning of their lives together.

The lesbians’ marriage ceremony in the Vietnamese capital won’t be officially recognised, but that could soon change. Vietnam’s Communist government is now considering whether to allow same-sex couples to marry or legally register and receive rights – positioning the country to be the first in Asia to do so.

“Our love for each other is real and nothing changes regardless of whether the law is passed or not,” said Loan, 31. “But when it is passed, we will definitely go get registered. I can’t wait!”

Even gay rights activists are stunned by the justice ministry’s new proposal to include same-sex couples in its overhaul of the country’s marriage law. No one knows what form it will take or whether it will survive long enough to be debated before the National Assembly next year, but supporters say the fact that it’s even being considered is a victory in a region where simply being gay can result in jail sentences or whippings with a rattan cane.

“I think everyone is surprised,” said Vien Tanjung, an Indonesian gay-rights activist. “Even if it’s not successful it’s already making history. ”

Vietnam seems an unlikely champion of gay rights issues. It is routinely lambasted by the international community over its dismal human rights record. Up until just a few years ago, homosexuality was labelled as a “social evil” alongside drug addiction and prostitution.

But over the past five years, that’s slowly started to change. Vietnam’s state-run media, unable to write about politically sensitive topics or openly criticise the one-party government, have embraced the chance to explore gay issues. They have run lengthy newspaper stories and television broadcasts, including one live special that won a top award.

Video of Vietnam’s first publicized gay wedding went viral online in 2010, and a few other ceremonies followed, capturing widespread public attention. The justice ministry now says a legal framework is necessary because the courts do not know how to handle disputes between same-sex couples living together. The new law could provide rights such as owning property, inheriting and adopting children.

“I think, as far as human rights are concerned, it’s time for us to look at the reality,” justice minister Ha Hung Cuong said last Tuesday in an online chat broadcast on national TV and radio. “The number of homosexuals has mounted to hundreds of thousands.”

Globally, 11 countries have legalised same-sex marriage since the Netherlands became the first to do so in 2001 but the issue has remained largely off the table across Asia.

Vietnam will also hold its first public gay pride parade on 5 August in Hanoi. The country is socially conservative, but the government restricts the kind of politicised religious movements that typically push back against same-sex marriage in other countries. Gay pride events also seem to pose little threat to Communist Party’s dominance.

The same-sex marriage proposal still has several hurdles before it could become law.