Violence & Discrimination against LBTQ Women in Singapore

Singapore actively proclaims its duty to protect all LGBT persons living in Singapore. Yet human rights violations against LBTQ persons in the country remain largely invisible and persistent.

Although Section 377A of the penal code does not criminalise Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LBTQ) persons, it institutionalises a legislative and administrative framework of discrimination based on sexuality and gender, and promotes violence and discrimination.

This disproportionately affects LBTQ persons, who are disadvantaged in multiple and intersectional ways due to their gender, race, sexual orientation, and/or gender identity and expression. In recognition of the significant gaps in rights protection and information regarding the current situation of LBTQ persons in Singapore, Sayoni embarked on this documentation study focusing specifically on discrimination and violence on the basis of SOGIESC.

As far as we know, this book is the first attempt to systematically document the experiences of LBTQ persons in Singapore. The book comprises 14 chapters and also includes helpful resources for individuals seeking help.

Programme Agenda

1) Introduction - Why research? 2) Presentation on the report 3) Panel discussion with the researchers, activists and allies 4) Q & A

Jolene Tan:

"Am in the middle of reading this important, and devastating, work. Beneath the glib talk of "morality", "family values", "social norms" and "culture wars", there is a seething world of real human cruelty."

In the process of conducting the research, we encountered a great number of challenges that required further assistance and external referrals. Several times, the assistance came from our own pool of interviewers, who accompanied participants for police reports, court dates, and counselling sessions, as participants did not trust mainstream support services to handle their cases without discriminating against them. There were also people who were unwilling to speak to us for fear of being found out by their families or abusers. Many still lived with their abusers and felt that their movements would be tracked. Others had been ‘converted’ to heterosexuality through familial social control, forced marriage, religious communities, and/or psychiatric treatment.

Come to our launch to get hold of a copy of the research and to hear from some of the volunteers and researchers in their difficult journey of bringing forth the lived realities of LBTQ persons.

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=Acknowledgements=

This article was written by Roy Tan.