World
Out in the World: LGBTQ news from Europe and Asia
Russia investigating Duolingo for allegedly spreading ‘LGBTQ propaganda’
RUSSIA
The Russian Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media agency, abbreviated as Roskomnadzor, has launched an investigation into the language learning app Duolingo for allegedly spreading “LGBTQ propaganda.”
The popular learning app teaches more than 40 languages to more than 60 million users worldwide.
Russian media news outlet Novaya Gazeta reported that a complaint, filed by a group Radetel, based in Novosibirsk in central Russia, and claims on its social media and website that it is on a mission to protect “public morality, culture and traditional values,” accused the learning app of violations of Article 5 the Russian “on the protection of children from information harmful to their health and development” law which specifies the promotion of “non-traditional sexual relations as detrimental to children’s health and development.”
Russian state media outlet TASS reported that Roskomnadzor confirmed that the agancy would be investigating Duolingo for potential “distribution of information that promotes LGBTQ.”
For its part as defined on its website, Duolingo states: “Duolingo believes deeply in diversity and representation. This made it a no-brainer to include all types of characters of different ages, ethnic backgrounds and sexual orientations.”
The app’s statement goes on reading:
“The second reason is our learners. Something really unique about Duolingo is the extremely vast and diverse audience for our content: Language learners of all ages, from all around the world. Yes, that’s a lot of people. And with such a broad base of learners, we have a responsibility to reflect and relate to the experiences of all kinds of people, LGBTQIA+ folks included.
Of course, characters are also much more compelling when they’re relatable, not only because of their dreams and their flaws but also who they love. So when we create Stories, which are written first in English and then adapted to other languages, we aim to make our content entertaining and relatable for learners worldwide. This is a fun and oftentimes difficult challenge. We’re proud to have our characters, especially our LGBTQ characters, help us do that.”
Radetel, which referred to members of the LGBTQ community as “sodomites” in its complaint to Roskomnadzor, said that “outraged” parents had brought Duolingo’s LGBTQ “propaganda” to its attention, adding that they had said they didn’t know how to explain the sentences to their primary school-age children “without traumatizing them,” Novaya Gazeta reported.
(Human Rights Watch) – Russian courts have issued the first known extremism convictions arising from the 2023 Supreme Court ruling designating the “international LGBT movement” as extremist, Human Rights Watch said on Feb. 14. The Supreme Court ruling, which was handed down on Nov. 30 but became public only in mid-January 2024, indicates that many more convictions may follow.
The Supreme Court ruling also declared the rainbow flag a forbidden symbol of the “LGBT movement.” Displaying the flag is the basis for administrative penalties in at least three cases that courts have tried in recent weeks. In late January, a court in Nizhny Novgorod sentenced a woman to five days detention for wearing rainbow-colored earrings after an individual accosted her and her friend in a cafe. Also in late January, a judge in Volgograd region handed down a fine over a rainbow flag published on a social media page. In early February, a court in Saratov fined a woman for posting a rainbow flag on social media.
“The Supreme Court decision opened the floodgates to allow arbitrary prosecution of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people, along with anyone who defends their rights or expresses solidarity with them,” said Tanya Lokshina, associate Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “For years, Russian authorities tried to erase LGBT visibility, and now they have criminalized it.”
At least three groups supporting LGBT rights have shut down their operations for fear of prosecution. Other consequences of the ruling have included a series of police raids of gay clubs, incidents of self-censorship, and an uptick in requests for legal advice from remaining LGBT support groups, which have now turned to working clandestinely.
The Supreme Court ruling and prosecutions flowing from it are discriminatory, violate a wide range of rights, and should be overturned, Human Rights Watch said.
Under Russian criminal law, a person found guilty of displaying extremist group symbols faces up to 15 days in detention for the first offense and up to four years in prison for a repeat offense. Participating in or financing an extremist organization is punishable by up to 12 years in prison. The authorities may include individuals suspected of involvement with an extremist organization in the countrywide “list of extremists” and freeze their bank accounts. People deemed to be involved with an extremist organization are barred from running for public office. Draft legislation further expanding the notion of “justifying extremism” has passed first reading in Russia’s Parliament.
The Supreme Court’s perverse decision to accept the “international public LGBT movement” as a fictional defendant in this case was compounded by their denial of all requests by LGBT activists to participate, followed by the claim that “the defendant party failed to appear.” The court also refused to consider numerous appeals lodged by LGBT rights activists, saying that only the parties to the case had the right to appeal the ruling. By using the twisted legal fiction that there was an identifiable defendant called the “international LGBT movement” to contest the case, the Supreme Court denied all Russian LGBT persons and their allies directly impacted by the decision any due process rights, including by refusing to disclose the text of the judgment or reasons for the decision.
The text of the ruling, which was later seen by a regional media outlet in the course of a court case and published in January, states that the rainbow flag is the movement’s symbol. Because Russian law enforcement practice treats even old social media posts that are still available online as grounds for prosecution, thousands of people, and most likely more,who have posted the rainbow flag over the years face the risk of prosecution. The ruling states that 281 “active participants” in the movement have been personally identified, but it does not clarify how or by whom.
The Supreme Court ruling is the most recent example of authorities’ long record of misusing Russia’s broad and vague anti-extremism legislation to prosecute peaceful critics and members of certain religious groups, Human Rights Watch said. Hundreds of people have been wrongfully prosecuted under criminal extremism legislation, according to the SOVA Research Center and the list of political prisoners released by prominent human rights group Memorial.
Since a court banned three organizations affiliated with political opposition leader Aleksey Navalny as “extremist” in 2021, Navalny and five of his supporters have been sentenced to prison on a range of extremism charges for legitimate activism, while dozens more have received fines and short-term jail sentences. Six members of Vesna, a democratic youth movement, have been in pretrial custody since June 2023 on various spurious charges, including extremism. Hundreds of Jehovah’s Witnesses have been jailed since the organization was banned as “extremist” in 2017.
Editor’s Note: On Feb. 16, it was announced that opposition leader Aleksey Navalny had died in a Russian Penal Camp.
The Russian Federal Prison Service said early Feb. 16 that Navalny felt unwell after a walk and lost consciousness. An ambulance arrived, and its crew tried to rehabilitate him but was unsuccessful, it added.
Navalny was serving a 19-year sentence on charges of extremism, and in December was moved from a different prison to the highest-security level facility in the country near the Arctic Circle. The “special regime” penal colony prison in the town of Kharp, which is about 1,200 miles northeast of Moscow, is in a remote area known for its severe winters.
Navalny has been imprisoned since January 2021, when he returned to Russia after recovering from a poisoning that he blamed on Putin, who has denied trying to kill Navalny with a nerve agent.
The Supreme Court ruling has drawn strong criticism internationally. The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights deplored the ruling, stating that “the law must never be used to perpetuate inequality and discrimination,” and saying that Russia should repeal laws that discriminate against LGBTQ people.
Five U.N. human rights experts reminded Russian authorities that under international human rights law, peaceful advocacy and expression of sexual orientation and gender identity can neither be considered “extremist” nor legitimate grounds for administrative and criminal prosecution.
“The ruling has no basis in reality; it is filled with conspiracy theories, false and unsubstantiated claims, and hateful stereotypes; and it seeks to impose ‘traditional values’ ideology through repressive criminal law,” Lokshina said. “The only way to remedy this travesty of justice is to vacate the recent convictions and reverse the absurd ‘extremism’ designation.”
POLAND
BY ROB SALERNO — A newscaster on Poland’s public television service delivered an apology for his and the network’s previous vicious and dehumanizing coverage of LGBTQ people and issues, after Poland’s new government replaced the far-right editorial board of the broadcaster.
News host Wojciech Szelag acknowledged that TVP had frequently demonized LGBTQ people and delivered his apology ahead of a segment in which he interviewed two queer activists.
“For many years in Poland, shameful words have been directed at numerous individuals simply because they chose to determine for themselves who they are and whom they love,” Szelag said. “LGBT+ people are not an ideology, but people, specific names, faces, relatives, and friends. All these people should hear the word sorry from this place today. This is where I apologize.”
Poland’s new center-left government took office in December, ending eight years of government by the extremely right-wing Law and Justice Party that strongly opposed LGBTQ rights. The new government under Prime Minister Donald Tusk has moved to reshape institutions that the previous government had filled with party cronies, which caused controversy when the government fired the TVP management. TVP had long been accused of having become a mouthpiece for the Law and Justice Party.
Some liberals accused the government of repeating the mistakes of the right, but the government insists it is simply trying to restore editorial balance.
Bart Staszewski, one of the LGBTQ activists that was interviewed on the program said the apology was evidence that Poland is moving in the right direction.
“Today, first time in Polish TV, after eight years of right-wing government, the LGBT+ activists appeared in live broadcast. I was seating there and heard journalist shaking voice. He made an apology after years of portraying LGBT-people a threat to Polish nation in the same studio. I was moved. Apology an important part of reconciliation. This is Poland I want to fight for… Thank you,” Staszewski wrote on X.
Straszewski later posted an image of an old broadcast in which Szelag said “LGBT ideology destroys family,” as evidence of how far the network had come.
Tusk has made several promises to the LGBTQ community as part of his election platform and coalition government agreement. He’s promised to institute a hate speech law, legalize same-sex civil unions and legalize abortion — all issues that were strongly rejected by the previous government.
It’s not clear at present when or if these proposals will become law, as the Law and Justice Party still holds the presidency with its veto power, at least until elections expected next May.
UNITED KINGDOM
19-year-old Summer Betts-Ramsey appeared before a magistrate at Willesden Magistrates Court on Feb. 13, charged with attempted murder and possession of an deadly weapon in public after she allegedly stabbed an 18-year-old transgender woman at who was with friends headed to the Harrow Leisure Center for a roller-skating party.
Metropolitan Police Detective Inspector Nicola Hannant, who is leading the investigation, said:
“This was a shocking and violent attack and we continue to support the victim and her family as she recovers from her injuries. At this stage, we are treating this as a transphobic hate crime and we know this will cause significant concern.
Since the incident occurred, we have been working tirelessly to identify those responsible and are making good progress with our investigation.
We have already arrested four people however we continue to appeal for anyone who may have been in the area or who believes they have further information to come forward and speak to us. We have increased police patrols and would encourage people to approach these officers with any information or concerns.”
According to Hannant, the victim was subjected to transphobic slurs before being stabbed 14 times. She was rushed to hospital for treatment and subsequently discharged.
The attack comes just over a year after a pair of 15-year-olds stabbed trans teen Brianna Ghey, 16, to death in a park near her home in Birchwood. The teens, Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe, now 16, were both handed life sentences earlier this month.
The Metropolitan Police have dedicated LGBTQ points of contact across London who can offer advice and support. Their contact details can be found here: (Link)
IRAQ
An unnamed security official with the Al-Qadisiyah Governorate, told Iraqi media outlet Shafaq News that a trans blogger was killed after being repeatedly stabbed in the center of the city of Al Diwaniyah, the capital city of the governorate that is located roughly 100 miles southeast of the country’s capital city of Baghdad.
The police official told Shafaq News: “Simsim, 28-years-old was killed by unknown assailants with several sharp knife stabs near the mural roundabout in the center of Diwaniyah city.” The official went on to note “the killers escaped to an unidentified location and the forensic team took the body to complete the legal formalities.”
Iraq has witnessed a series of assassinations of trans people, Shafaq News noted. One of the most prominent cases was the murder of NOOR BM, a popular TikTok figure who was shot dead by an unknown gunman in Baghdad in September 2023.
Last August, Iraq’s Communications and Media Commission has ordered media outlets and social media companies that operate in the country to refer to homosexuality as “sexual deviance.”
Homosexuality is legal in Iraq, but violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity remains commonplace in the country.
JAPAN
In a landmark ruling last week, the Okayama Family Court’s Tsuyama Branch recognized a trans man’s petition to legally change his gender without having first undergone sterilization.
Japanese media outlet The Mainichi reported that the plaintiff, 50-year-old Tacaquito Usui, a farmer from a rural area of the prefecture of Okayama, legally change his gender without having first undergoing sterilization, after the Supreme Court’s presiding judge, Yukihiko Imasaki, ruled the requirement unconstitutional this past October.
But while the Supreme Court did issue a ruling on sterilization surgery, the high court is re-evaluating the requirement that a person’s genitals must conform in appearance with those of the gender they identify with.
The Okayama court judged that the man fulfilled the appearance criterion, the same conclusion it reached in his first petition, due to factors including his having undergone hormone therapy.
The Mainichi reported Usui, operates a farm in the village of Shinjo, where he lives with his 46-year-old partner and her son, aged 13. With Usui’s gender now legally recognized, the pair will be able to fulfill their long-held wish to marry.
“I want to thank my family. I feel a new life is beginning,” Usui said in a press conference after the decision.
Usui was assigned as female at birth and has said that he felt uncomfortable being treated as such from a young age. After becoming an adult, he was diagnosed with gender identity disorder. Usui told reporters the latest outcome “left me feeling society has changed” and that he is “moved by the progress that has been made.”
Additional reporting by Rob Salerno, the BBC, PinkNewsUK, Human Rights Watch, Novaya Gazeta, Agence France-Presse, The Mainichi, Shafaq News and Euronews 24.
South Africa
WorldPride 2028 to take place in Cape Town
South Africa is first African country to host event
Cape Town last month secured enough votes to host WorldPride in 2028.
The bidding process, which started in late October, took place in Medellín, Colombia, where the Guadalajara (Mexico) Pride and WorldPride Cape Town bidding teams contended for the rights to host WorldPride. InterPride, which organizes the event, on Nov. 8 officially declared Cape Town the host of WorldPride 2028.
It will be the first time WorldPride will take place in an African country.
South Africa is the only country on the continent that constitutionally recognizes LGBTQ rights. South Africa, as a result, in recent years has seen a surge in the number of LGBTQ asylum seekers from Africa and around the world.
Reacting to the historical precedence, Cape Town Pride said it was now time for Africa to shine and acknowledged the WorldPride Cape Town bidding team and the city of Cape Town for their role in the bidding process.
“This is a first for the whole continent of Africa,” said Cape Town Pride CEO Tommy Patterson. “A few weeks ago, in Medellín, Cape Town Pride, the city of Cape Town, and the bidding team presented our bid. The team did a wonderful job and we all forged great friendships and allies from Pride groups all over the globe.”
“Cape Town Pride is thrilled by the news and support shown by the global LGBTI+ family,” added Patterson.
Michael Gladwin of the WorldPride Cape Town bidding team echoed Patterson’s excitement.
“This will mark the first time WorldPride is held on the African continent, and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome the global LGBTQ+ community to our beautiful city,” said Gladwin. “A heartfelt thank you goes out to all our incredible partners who supported this journey. Together, we will showcase Cape Town as a beacon of inclusivity and diversity.”
Gladwin also congratulated Guadalajara Pride for their bid.
“Their commitment in promoting LGBTQ+ rights is inspiring, and we look forward to collaborating in the future,” said Gladwin.
Cape Town’s LGBTQ community is celebrating the successful bid, while others in the city have criticized it.
Rev. Oscar Bougardt, founder and lead pastor of the Calvary Hope Baptist Church, described WorldPride as “garbage” and “filth” that should be condemned.
“I am happy to say I am amongst the pastors in Cape Town who are in opposition and are outraged at this garbage planned for 2028,” said Bougardt. “The city of Cape Town and LGBTQ+ organizations planned this event without consulting rate payers, this bid was done in secret and taxpayers’ money will be used to fund this filth.”
“Just as the LGBTQ + organizations have the right to host WorldPride 2028, we have the right to say we don’t want it in Cape Town,” he added. “I pray more church leaders will stand up against the planned WorldPride 2028. To church leaders and parents, this is the time to unite and tell the city of Cape Town and LGBTQ+ organizations that we are disgusted at the planned event. Untied we stand and divided we will fall!”
Kaohsiung, Taiwan, in 2022 won the bid to host WorldPride 2025, but the local planning committee withdrew it amid a dispute with InterPride. WorldPride 2025 will take place in D.C. from May 17-June 8, 2025.
The 2024 ILGA World Conference took place last month in Cape Town.
World
Out in the World: LGBTQ news from Europe, Asia, and Canada
Slovenia court rules same-sex couples have constitutional right to assisted reproduction
SLOVENIA
The Constitutional Court has issued a ruling that laws barring same-sex couples and single women from accessing assisted reproduction are unconstitutional discrimination.
The court has left the laws in place while giving parliament one year to bring the laws governing assisted reproduction into compliance with the constitution.
The Slovenian LGBTQ advocacy group LEGEBITRA celebrated the ruling in a post on its web site.
“The decision of the Constitutional Court is a victory for all those who wanted to start a family in Slovenia and were unfairly deprived of this opportunity in the past. Rainbow (and single-parent) families are part of our society, and their children are part of the community in the country in which they live and grow up. It is only fitting that their story begins here,” the post says.
The Treatment of Infertility and in Vitro Fertilization Procedures Act has had its restrictions on single women and same-sex couples from fertility treatment targeted by progressive legislators since it was introduced in 2000.
Amendments that would have allowed single women to access in vitro fertilization were passed in 2001 but were immediately put to a citizen-initiated referendum, which voted them down.
Since then, the former Yugoslav republic has undergone a number of progressive changes, including joining the European Union in 2004 and gradually expanding LGBTQ rights.
In 2020, a group of legislators from the Left party asked the Constitutional Court to review the law, and the following year, their request was joined by the state’s Advocate for the Principal of Equality.
The court spent more than four years deliberating the appeal, during which time it also struck down laws banning same-sex marriage in 2022. Parliament later amended the law so that same-sex couples enjoy all rights of marriage, including adoption, but left the ban on assisted reproduction in place.
The Slovenia Times reports that the ruling was welcomed by the governing coalition, which includes the Left party. The government has pledged to move quickly to implement the ruling.
“This corrects one of the gravest injustices done to women by right-wing politics and the Catholic Church in Slovenia, who denied women the right to become mothers,” the Left said.
The case was brought by a group of left-leaning MPs four years ago — but perhaps the delay is related to the fact that in that time, the court also struck down the ban on same-sex marriage in 2022.
RUSSIA
Russian authorities raided three nightclubs in Moscow over the weekend as part of the state’s deepening crackdown on LGBTQ people and expression, Radio Free Europe reports.
The raids took place late Saturday night and early Sunday morning at the Mono, Arma, and Simach nightclubs in the capital. All three clubs have been known to host themed events for LGBTQ clientele.
According to Russian state-owned media outlet TASS and several Telegram channels, patrons, and employees of the clubs were forced to lie on the floor with their hands behind their heads before they were carted away in police wagons. Patrons and workers had their phones, laptops, and cameras seized and documents inspected
It’s not yet known what prompted the raids, although Russian authorities frequently claim to be inspecting for illegal substances and drug users.
Russian authorities have carried out several raids on LGBTQ establishments since the passage of a law banning positive portrayals or information about queer people in 2022. Last year, the Russian Supreme Court ruled that the “international LGBT movement” is an “extremist organization” and granted a request from the Ministry of Justice to ban it from the country.
Russia’s crackdown on LGBTQ rights has inspired copycat legislation among its neighbors, notably in Georgia, Belarus, and Kyrgyzstan.
CANADA
A small town in Northern Ontario has been fined C$10,700 (approximately $10,000) for its refusal to issue a Pride Month declaration or raise the rainbow flag.
The town of Emo population 1,300, which sits on the border with Minnesota about 200 miles northwest of Duluth, had been requested to issue the Pride declaration by Borderlands Pride in 2020 and raise the flag for one week, but the town council refused in a 3-2 vote, prompting a years-long legal battle.
Last week, that came to an end as the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal found the town and its mayor guilty of discrimination and ordered the town to pay Borderlands Pride C$10,000 in compensation, and the mayor to pay an additional C$5,000 ($3,559.92).
“We didn’t pursue this because of the money. We pursued this because we were treated in a discriminatory fashion by a municipal government, and municipalities have obligations under the Ontario Human Rights Code not to discriminate in the provision of a service,” Doug Judson, a lawyer and board member of Borderlands Pride, told CBC News.
The tribunal also ordered the mayor to take a Human Rights 101 training course offered by the Ontario Human Rights Commission within 30 days.
Mayor Harold McQuaker has not commented publicly on the ruling.
CHINA
Calls for Hong Kong government’s to officially recognize same-sex unions have intensified after the city’s Court of Final Appeal issued rulings last week that affirmed lower court rulings that found same-sex couples have equal rights to inheritance and social housing as heterosexual couples.
The ruling was in line with a similar ruling issued last year by the city’s top court, in which the city was ordered to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples by September 2025.
The new ruling with facilitate same-sex couples’ access to public housing, a vital need in one of the world’s most housing-crunched cities. The ruling also affirms that same-sex spouses can inherit public housing from a deceased spouse.
In both cases, the ruling only applies to spouses who have legally married overseas, because Hong Kong does not yet have a way for same-sex couples to legally register their relationships.
The nearest places where same-sex Hong Kong citizens can marry are Australia and the U.S. territory of Guam, with Thailand becoming available in the new year. Although same-sex marriage is legal in nearby Taiwan, residency requirements may block access there.
Although legislators have been slow to act on demands for civil unions or same-sex marriage, Hong Kongese same-sex couples have gradually gained access to more rights through court actions.
The Court of Final Appeal has previously ordered the government to have foreign marriages recognized for immigration purposes, to allow same-sex couples to file their taxes jointly, and to stepchild adoption.
India
India’s Transgender Welfare Boards fail to meet trans people’s basic needs
Committees have only been established in 17 regions
Nineteen of India’s 28 states and eight union territories lack a functional Transgender Welfare Board, despite legal mandates.
Most of the boards that have been established in 17 regions operate without policies, compliance framework, or any substantial authority. This lack of oversight, combined with an absence of policies, has left transgender Indians without access to critical services.
India’s 2011 Census says there are 487,803 trans people in the country, yet only 5.6 percent have managed to apply for a trans identity card. These identity cards, essential for accessing government programs designed specifically for trans people, remain challenging to obtain, hindering access to crucial welfare programs.
Under the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2019 and its 2020 rules, 17 states and union territories, including Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal, have notified the establishment of a Transgender Welfare Board. Rule 10(1) of the law, however, mandates all state and union governments must constitute a board to safeguard trans rights, promote their interests, and facilitate access to government welfare schemes.
Reports reveal most Indian states with a notified Transgender Welfare Board have held fewer than one meeting per year since their inception, raising concerns about the effectiveness of these boards. States such as Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Chhattisgarh, Manipur, and Tripura have yet to disclose any updates on their boards’ activities. Notably, Gujarat’s Transgender Welfare Board, established in collaboration with UNAIDS in 2019, reportedly did not hold a single meeting until Oct. 14, according to board members.
Only a few states and union territories saw any regular activity from their Transgender Welfare Boards in 2023; with Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Chandigarh, and Maharashtra holding just four meetings each. Other states have held fewer meetings or none at all since the board’s formation.
In states like Mizoram, the Transgender Welfare Board has not held meeting since its creation.
In Manipur, the board has been virtually defunct since its establishment in 2017. Although the state’s reappointed the 17-member board last year, it included only minimal trans representation, with one trans woman and one trans man appointed.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court in 2022 criticized the Chandigarh Transgender Welfare Board for its insufficient activity, describing it as a mere “cosmetic feature” in a Public Interest Litigation filed by Yashika, a trans student. The court observed that the board had failed to meet regularly, hindering its ability to fulfill its duties and effectively support the trans community.
“Although the petitioner had submitted complaints in this regard to the Union Territory Administration, no relief was granted and, thus, it is essential to ensure that bodies such as the Transgender Welfare Board acquire teeth and do not remain cosmetic features,” said the High Court. “Meetings should be held more frequently so that issues likely to arise in the future can be anticipated.”
An Amicus Curiae the Kerala High Court appointed in 2021 reported the Kerala State Transgender Justice Board had not held a single meeting that year.
Since its creation under the Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry, the National Council for Transgender Persons has held only two meetings in the past four years. Reports also suggest that budget allocations for state Transgender Welfare Boards often vary based on the ruling political party.
Maharashtra in 2020 allocated approximately $602,410 to its welfare board, but no further budget was earmarked for the board after the government changed.
Souvik Saha, founder of Jamshedpur Queer Circle, an LGBTQ organization that conducts sensitization workshops with law enforcement and local communities, criticized the frequent inaction of Transgender Welfare Boards.
“As an LGBTQ rights activist and head of Jamshedpur Queer Circle, I find it deeply disheartening yet unsurprising that only 5.6 percent of transgender people in India possess a transgender ID card. This figure underscores the systemic barriers faced by the transgender community when accessing their rights,” said Saha. “The example of Gujarat’s Transgender Welfare Board, which despite its collaboration with UNAIDS was dormant for nearly four years, illustrates how bureaucratic inefficiency and lack of political will stymie progress. Similarly, Mizoram’s board has yet to hold a single meeting, reflecting the widespread neglect of transgender issues.”
Souvik further said the situation in Jharkhand mirrors these national trends.
The state’s Transgender Welfare Board, though established, has faced challenges in regular functioning and proactive policy implementation. Reports from local community members highlight that meetings are infrequent and the board’s activities lack sufficient outreach. Trans people in Jharkhand, as a consequence, face barriers in securing IDs and accessing welfare schemes, contributing to a continued cycle of marginalization.
Saha told the Washington Blade that inaction within Transgender Welfare Boards stems from a lack of political will, bureaucratic hurdles, social stigma, marginalization, and inadequate representation. His organization has encountered numerous stories reflecting these challenges, with community members expressing frustration over the stagnant state of welfare boards and the difficult process of obtaining official recognition. Saha emphasized that these systemic barriers leave many in the transgender community struggling to access the support and resources they are entitled to.
“For any meaningful change, it is essential that welfare boards function effectively, with regular meetings, transparent procedures, and active community involvement,” said Saha. “The government must take urgent steps to address these issues, enforce accountability, and collaborate with local LGBTQ organizations to bridge the gaps between policy and practice.”
Meera Parida, a trans activist from Odisha, told the Blade that while the previous state government implemented numerous welfare initiatives for trans individuals, it fell short of establishing a dedicated Transgender Welfare Board.
“Back then it was Biju Janata Dal party leading the state and now it is Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) still there is no Transgender Welfare Board in the state,” said Parida. “After the Supreme Court’s judgement, it was our thought that some radical change is coming, nothing short of that happened. Most of the governments have no interest in it and that is why this is not happening.”
Parida told the Blade it was also her failure as she was associated with the previous government and in the party, but she was not able to convince her political party to establish a welfare board for trans people.
The Blade reached out to UNAIDS for reaction, but the organization has yet to response.
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