Fridae

Lebanon's interior minister has been criticised by the LGBTQ community after he told security forces to crack down on LGBTQ events during the month of June - Pride month - on the basis that such gatherings would spread "sexual perversion" and are against the country's religious values.

Minister Bassam Mawlawi's message was made public in an official releasse by the interior ministry.

Lebanon is considered one of the most liberal countries in the region, but public statements such as this from authorities are clearly a worrying development.

The interior ministry confirmed that the minister contacted security forces regarding LGBTQ events following pressure from religious authorities.

Challenging economic conditions appear to be increasing the vulnerability of Lebanon's LGBTQ community.

What’s life like for LGBTQ people in Lebanon?

While still a socially conservative country, Lebanon is slightly more liberal than other countries in the region.

There’s been no official decriminalisation of homosexuality, but recent judicial interpretation of the relevant laws seems to have established that sodomy is not a crime and people should not be prosecuted for same-sex sexual activity.

Article 534 of Lebanon’s Penal Code includes a prohibition on sexual relations that are “contradicting the laws of nature” – punishable by up to one year in prison – but, in recent years, a number of court decisions have found that this prohibition doesn’t extend to same-sex encounters on the grounds that homosexuality doesn’t contradict the laws of nature.

However, there is still quite widespread homophobia and police harassment of LGBTQ people. Authorities frequently use public morality laws to ban LGBTQ Pride events.

In Beirut, there is a community of LGBTQ people – working together to tackle homophobia and to create safe spaces such as bars and cafes and other meeting points.