Gay rights in middle east

This is due to article 489 of the Penal Code of Morocco that criminalises “lewd or unnatural acts with an individual of the same sex”.

Rank 1/10

Women’s Rights – Mixed

Morocco has improved women’s political representation through a system of reserved seats, with electoral reforms increasing female representation in local elections, at the national level, 60 out of 395 seats in the legislature are allocated to women, along with half of the 30 seats reserved for youth.

There are laws that protect people from being discriminated against based on their gender, race or national/ethnic origin. Surveys from the current year and the previous year receive full weight. Palestinian-Jordanians, despite making up a large portion of the population, and being one of the few groups of Palestinians to be naturalised en-masse in their country of residence, encounter barriers in government and military positions.

Each topic is assigned a "total possible score" and a "score" is assigned based the status of the law using a rating scale that ranges from 0% to 100% (for example, if homosexuality is legal, it would would receive a score of 100, but if it's illegal, it would receve a score of 0.)

If the status of an issue is unknown, not applicable, or no data has not been added to Equaldex, the issue's score is completely discarded and not included in the ranking.

Unfortunately in some cases, especially in divorce and child custody situations, women are disadvantaged in Lebanese courts and outcomes disproportionately favour men. There have been reports, though sparse, of active enforcement of those laws. Syrian refugees in Lebanon have been denied their own naturalisation process and there have been reports of assaults against them by Lebanese people.

While the Quran explicitly condemns the actions of the people of Lot (commonly interpreted as a denunciation of homosexual acts), interpretations of these verses vary.

Rank 7/10

Women’s Rights – Good

Women legally are equal before the law in most aspects. Lebanon is famous for its relaxed attitudes towards issues such as the wearing of veils and the rights of women to work and to live independently of familial men.

The lack of prosecution and consequently de facto criminalisation is why the rank is so high.

Rank 6/10

Women’s Rights – Mixed

Similar to the other Gulf States, women do have the right to work and to live their lives. Ansar Allah authorities are detaining women in female-only prison facilities.

Political opinions that are critical of Al-Burhan’s government or the RSF are likely to bring down the ire of those groups. Child marriage is legal from age 15 and nearly a third of girls are married before 18, according to UNICEF. West Bank journalistic and media outlets must contend with both Palestinian Authority and Israeli censorship demands.

In Saudi Arabia, no official LGBTQI+ organization is tolerated, and any form of activism in favor of these people’s rights is severely repressed. While these efforts have led to increased visibility, they have also sparked backlash from conservative groups accusing activists of promoting “Western values.”

The Intersection of Gender and Sexuality

Transgender Rights

The experiences of transgender individuals in the Middle East often differ from those of cisgender homosexual individuals.

West Bank authorities have failed to reduce the level of abuse and violence that women face. This weight decay ensures that the public opinion index is always most influenced by the most recent data, reflecting evolving public attitudes, while still taking into account older surveys to maintain a comprehensive overview. This has culminated in recent detentions following student protests, with examples such as 97 individuals being detained at Istanbul’s Boğaziçi University

Rank 2/10

Twelfth: Morocco

Our ranking 11 points out of a possible 40

LGBTQ Rights – Poor 

LGBTQ people face harsh discrimination from both the government and society at large.