LGBT rights in Lebanon

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons living in Lebanon may face cultural, legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Homosexuality remains a crime in Lebanon.

A poll done by the Pew Research Center in 2007 shows that 79% of Lebanese believe "Homosexuality should be rejected", as opposed to 18% who believe "homosexuality should be accepted".

Laws against homosexuality

Article 534 of the Lebanese Penal Code prohibits having sexual relations that are "contradicting the laws of nature," which is punishable by up to a year in prison. This prohibits homosexuality, along with adultery, sodomy and fornication.

As a practical matter, enforcement of the law is varied and often occurs through occasional police harassment and arrests. In 2002, the police broke into a woman's house after her mother claimed that her daughter had stolen some money and jewellery. Upon entering the house, the police found the woman having sexual relations with another woman and charged them both with the crime of sodomy. Other arrests of gay couples, or police raids of nightclubs where gay men patronize, are frequently reported in local newspapers.

On 11 December 2009, the Lebanon-based LGBT organization Helem launched a report that would target the legal situation of homosexuals in the Middle East and North Africa. In a historic moment, counted among the top 5 LGBT achievements worldwide in LGBT by change.org, a Lebanese judge in Batroun ruled against the use of article 534 to prosecute homosexuals.

Freedom of Speech and Expression

Government censorship of the press and other forms of communicative media tends to focus on national security issues, with violence directed at journalists, largely, the result of ongoing political and sectarian disputes. While there were initial reports of government censorship of LGBT themes, there has been a degree of liberalization in recent years.

LGBT Publications

Lebanon is the first Arab country with its own gay periodical. Entitled Barra (Out in Arabic). A trial issue was published in March 2005 with two full issues that followed in Summer 2005 and Spring 2006.

In 2009, "Bareed Mista3jil" is a book published by the Lebanese lesbian Meem organization in Beirut. Available in both English and Arabic versions, the book is a collection of 41 true and personal stories from lesbians, bisexuals, queer and questioning women, and transgender persons from all over Lebanon.

Living conditions

Although there is some amount of tolerance towards the homosexual movement, LGBT people in Lebanon are at a high risk of being disowned by theirs parents, ostracized by their peers and treated with condescension. Both physical and verbal bullying is commonly directed at LGBT Lebanese.

The experience of LGBT people living in Lebanon is heavily influenced by the criminal laws, lack of civil rights protection and the negative public opinion, which is heavily influenced by traditional Christian and Islamic morality. Some examples of how this impacts living conditions are as follows;

In 2003, Lebanese media reported that the Lebanon Dunkin Donuts store refused to serve customers that had the distinct effeminate male, or the butch female look. The policy was defended by the general manager, "We have kids of all ages coming to our shop, and I want the parents to be assured that when their kids come here they are being taken care of,” she said.

LGBT rights movement in Lebanon

Members of the LGBT Lebanese community began to publicly campaign for LGBT-rights in 2002, with the creation of a political association called, Hurriyyat Khassa ("Private Liberties" In English). The group focused its efforts on reforming Article 534 of the criminal code so that private sex acts between consenting adults would no longer be a crime. Another LGBT-rights organization in Lebanon is called Helem (Arabic: حلم‎, meaning "Dream" in Arabic). These organizations have staged a few public demonstrations, lectures and fundraisers for AIDS education.

In 2006, Helem celebrated the International Day Against Homophobia in Monroe Hotel Downtown.

In August 2007, a lesbian NGO named Meem was founded to support lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning women in Lebanon. The group offers community support, psychological counseling, an activity center, legal support, social events, and the opportunity to work on social change. Meem also hosts a Womyn House that serves as an activity and resource center in Beirut.

While these organizations have been permitted to exist, and gain some degree of publicity, they have little public support.

LGBT in Lebanese politics

None of the major or minor political parties or factions have publicly endorsed any of the goals of these gay rights organizations. On 29 May 2006, Al-Arabiya.net ran a piece in which Beirut municipality council member Saad-Eddine Wazzan publicly called on Lebanese PM Fouad Sanyoura and Minister of Interior Ahmad Fatfat to shut down Helem. The 16 June Friday sermons in the mosques of Beirut condemned homosexuality and pointed to the fact that Beirut has a licensed LGBT organization called Helem. The sermons also called on the government to provide explanations. The following day, Lebanon's acting Interior Minister Ahmed Fatfat denied charges by conservative Muslim clerics that the government had approved a gay rights group.

Lebanese LGBT movement in the Diaspora

Lebanese communities in the Diaspora (Europe, North America, Australia) have also established visibility and presence through Helem LGBT affiliates in various cities with big Lebanese presence including Montreal (where Helem has obtained legal registration), Paris, Los Angeles, and Sydney.