Marriage Equality in Thailand: A 22-Year Journey Toward Equal Rights
After more than 22 years of advocacy, Thailand's marriage equality bill has moved closer to becoming law, promising equal family rights for couples of all…
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The cabinet has approved the "Draft Marriage Equality Act" and submitted it to the House of Representatives for consideration on December 21, 2023. Although it may still take some time to turn this bill into a law that is actually in force in Thailand, it marks another important step toward equality for gender-diverse couples, who have been waiting for more than 22 years. This law would allow same-sex partners to become engaged and married, and to hold the same rights, duties, and family status as married heterosexual couples.
For Thailand, it may be a little late compared with the many countries that enacted marriage equality laws earlier. The Netherlands, in particular, became the first country in the world to approve and enforce a marriage equality law, in 2001, or 22 years ago, and it has served as a model for many other countries to adopt the same law in their own nations.
Over the two decades since the law took effect, thousands of LGBTQ+ couples in the Netherlands have married, accounting for 1.7% of all marriages. Among them were about 750 lesbian couples and 620 gay couples. Today, according to official data, roughly 20,000 married same-sex couples live in the Netherlands.
The "Netherlands effect" acted like fireworks, sparking more than 34 other countries around the world to gradually legalize marriage equality.
In 2003, Belgium became the second country to legalize marriage equality after the Netherlands, followed by Spain in 2005.
In 2009, Norway and Sweden adopted marriage equality laws, replacing the civil partnership laws that had been in effect in Norway since 1993 and in Sweden since 1995.
In 2010, Iceland enacted a marriage equality law, and the first couple to marry under it were former prime minister Johanna Sigurdardottir, who married Jonina Leosdottir; the two were a longtime LGBTQ+ couple who had loved each other for many years.
In 2012, Portugal enacted a marriage equality law, followed by Denmark, which enacted its law after receiving royal assent from Queen Margrethe II. Meanwhile, Greenland, a territory of Denmark, passed marriage equality nationwide in 2016.
In 2013, the French National Assembly passed a marriage equality law, which also allowed LGBTQ+ couples to adopt children.
In 2014, the United Kingdom legalized marriage for LGBTQ+ couples in England and Wales, while Northern Ireland legalized marriage equality in 2020.
In addition, many other European countries steadily adopted marriage equality laws throughout these two decades, among them Ireland and Luxembourg. After the Luxembourg Parliament passed its marriage equality law by a vote of 56 to 4, Prime Minister Xavier Bettel immediately announced his own marriage to his partner, becoming part of the first same-sex couple in an EU member state.
Finland, Germany, Malta, Austria, Slovenia, and Switzerland went on to pass such laws one after another. Most recently, Andorra, a co-principality bordering France, became the latest European country to enact marriage equality.
In North America, both Canada and the United States moved forward as well. In the United States, 36 states plus Washington, D.C. led the way on marriage equality before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to recognize marriage for LGBTQ+ people nationwide.
In South America, Argentina was the first country on the continent to legally allow LGBTQ+ couples to marry, followed by Brazil as the second South American country to pass a marriage equality law. Uruguay was among the early Latin American countries to enact such a law, along with Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Chile, Cuba, and Mexico.
In Asia and Australasia, New Zealand and Australia enacted laws allowing same-sex couples to marry, and even Taiwan, a small country, has allowed LGBTQ+ couples to marry legally since 2019.
For Thailand, the long-awaited marriage equality law is drawing closer to reality with every passing moment. From this point on, it is expected to take at least another six months for the Marriage Equality Act to pass through the House of Representatives and be enacted. When that day comes, it is believed that the rainbow across Thailand will bloom in full, filling many people's hearts with happiness.
Source: https://www.thairath.co.th/lifestyle/life/2749663
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- ราชกิจจานุเบกษา: พ.ร.บ.แก้ไขเพิ่มเติมประมวลกฎหมายแพ่งและพาณิชย์ (สมรสเท่าเทียม) Accessed 13 August 2026
