LGBTQ rights in Bahrain | |
---|---|
Status | Legal since 1976[1][2][3][4][5] |
Gender identity | Limited |
Military | No |
Discrimination protections | No |
Family rights | |
Recognition of relationships | No |
Adoption | No |
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people living in Bahrain face legal challenges and discrimination not experienced by non-LGBT residents.[2][3][4][5] While same-sex sexual activity was decriminalised in 1976, laws against indecency remain and are used to target gender and sexual minorities. Offences under these provisions allow for sentences of imprisonment, fines and deportation.[6]
Individuals are able to change their legal gender in a limited range of circumstances that are assessed as being in accordance with Islamic understandings of sex and gender as transmitted by Sunni fiqh. The state offers no protection from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics. LGBT individuals face entrenched social stigma.[7][8]
BNA Al
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).Albelad 2022
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).The law does not criminalize same-sex sexual conduct between consenting adults at least age 21, but it allots fines, imprisonment, deportation, or any of them for persons engaging in 'immoral behavior', and this provision has been used against individuals suspected of being LGBTQI+ or cross-dressing.
2023 ussd
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).cairo52
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).