The penal code of Bangladesh, under Section 377, forbids homosexual intercourse as well as same-sex marriage, civil unions, or domestic partnerships. As of November 2013, a third gender, the hijra, was recognized by the government. Though the government provides limited support (particularly in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic), hijras face negative social attitudes and even threats from religious extremists. Nonetheless, hijra culture flourishes: several LGBTQ organizations, including Boys of Bangladesh, boast of thousands of members and Roopbaan, the nation’s first LGBTQ magazine, has been in publication since 2014.
Marriage for Same-Sex Couples
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Civil Unions
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Joint Adoption
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Second Parent Adoption
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Employment Nondiscrimination Laws
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Broad Protections
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Criminalization of Violence
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Ban of Conversion Therapy
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Consensual Same-Sex Acts are Legal?
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Gender
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Max Penalty (Yrs in Prison)
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Ahmed, I. (2019, August). Decolonising Queer Bangladesh: Neoliberalism Against LGBTQ Emancipation. E-International Relations. https://www.e-ir.info/2019/08/16/decolonising-queer-bangladesh-neoliberalism-against-lgbtq-emancipation/
Amundsen, I. (2018, March). The ruins of Bangladesh's LGBT community. East Asia Forum. https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2018/03/23/the-ruins-of-bangladeshs-lgbt-community/
Anam, T. (2015, July). Transgender Rights, Bangladesh Style. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/03/opinion/tahmima-anam-transgender-rights-bangladesh-labannya-hijra.html
HRC Staff. (2017, April). New Photo Exhibit at HRC Commemorates Bangladeshi LGBTQ Activists. Human Rights Campaign. https://www.hrc.org/blog/new-photo-exhibit-at-hrc-commemorates-one-year-anniversary-of-murdered-bang
Karim, M. (2013, November). Hijras now a separate gender. Dhaka Tribune. https://web.archive.org/web/20170910040323/http://archive.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2013/nov/11/hijras-now-separate-gender
Mendes, L. R. (2019, March). State-Sponsored Homophobia. The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, And Intersex Association. https://ilga.org/downloads/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2019.pdf
Rahman, R. (2016, June 2). How Bangladesh's LGBT Community Is Dealing with Threats and Machete Attacks.Vice. https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/9b89v3/how-bangladeshs-lgbt-community-is-dealing-with-threats-and-machete-attacks
Rahman, R. (2017, June). No Country for Bangladesh's Gay Men. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/30/opinion/bangladesh-lgbt-gay.html
Roopbaan Editors. (2020, April). Statement on the Fourth Anniversary of the Murders of Xulhaz and Tonoy. Roopbaan. https://roopbaan.org/2020/04/23/statement-on-the-fourth-anniversary-of-the-murders-of-xulhaz-and-tonoy/
The World Bank. (2018). Bangladesh. Data. https://data.worldbank.org/country/bangladesh