It’s good to know that Jabba The Butt is mad as hell and ain’t gonna take it any more ‘cuz the powers-that-be want to turn his beloved cesspool of debauchery by the sea into a family friendly resort destination. Even if all that means is he’ll whine about it to the dozen of readers of his blog. Because in Pattaya gay means commercial sex and nothing dictates how gay Thailand is than farang whose myopic vision only allows for a narrowly focused glimpse of self-delusional reality. In Jabba’s case it’s that there is no good reason for Pattaya to be anything other than the Sin City he’s grown to love. Because the lifestyle of a Pattaya sexpat is a god-given right damnit and no meddling government should even think about putting a stop to the constant flow of hot and cold running moneyboys that are the very life blood of his golden years.

Yawn. It’s Jabba’s typical mouthing off about his version of what being gay in Thailand is all about: prostitution. Which, being a failed pimp, isn’t exactly news. But a far wider reaching opinion on what being gay in Thailand means has just seen the light of the day. A report by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been released that paints a not-so-rosy picture of gay life in the Kingdom. The joint analysis bills itself as a landmark report and the first comprehensive review and analysis of Thailand’s legal and social environment encompassing in-depth research on LGBT issues in Thailand. And their news ain’t good. But then ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’ immediately comes to mind, and any report that starts off with a two page list of Acronyms never bodes well for anyone other than its authors. But on the plus side, Jabba can now boast that he is just as myopic as a United Nations task force intent on explaining to Thailand what is wrong with it from the superior perspective of outsiders.

While Jabba’s concerns are on naked boys on stage and the freedom to buy them for the night, the USAID/UNDP’s is instead about gay rights and equality, even though those issues are dictated through Western perspectives. The report claims that “while the tourism authority actively promotes Thailand as a gay tourist destination, acceptance of non-traditional sexualities in Thai society is still perceived to be low.” According to the report, Thailand’s gay citizens live in a society where there is strong pressure to be a “good citizen” and put family concerns or interests before their own. This, the report says, is compounded by the notion that one’s sexuality or gender must not go against accepted norms and should not bring shame to oneself or one’s family.

All of which is true. But in Thai society everyone is supposed to be a ‘good citizen’ and everyone puts family concerns and interests before their own. That’s how a collective society operates. And sexuality is just one of many areas in which Thais are expected to not go against accepted norms, or bring shame to themselves or their family. In fact, that pretty well defines every breath the average Thai takes on a daily basis. And despite what the report insinuates, just because you are gay doesn’t mean you should be let off the hook.

Gay rights, equality, and non-discriminatory laws and legislation are all noble issues, but when you define those values through Western perceptions . . . well, you’ll quickly find that Western values are not as easy to import as is Western pop culture. And when Western nations feel they have the road map to equality for all countries on the earth to follow . . . well, maybe they need to clean up their own act first.

The USAID/UNDP’s report encompasses the findings of the Thailand National LGBT Community Dialogue held in March 2013 in Bangkok, Thailand (along with additional findings from a desk review, additional interviews, and analysis of published literature on LGBT issues in and around Thailand). The National Dialogue was attended by 45 participants, including representatives of LGBT organizations from throughout Thailand, the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, donor agencies, universities, nongovernmental, human rights institutions, legal aid organizations, and civil society organizations. In other words, organizations that rely on funding by governmental agencies like the USAID/UNDP.

So while the report defines how gay citizens are treated and viewed in Thai society, no effort was made to talk to average Thai citizens, only those whose jobs and organizations deal with gay rights issues provided input. That’s like Jabba asking the moneyboy he just hired to molest what his views on prostitution in Thailand are. Or asking one of his band of merry men if public sex in Sunee Plaza bars should be allowed and/or encouraged.

The USAID/UNDP’s report begins with a brief history of homosexuality and transgender behaviors in Thailand, and says that Thai society in the 19 century was relatively androgynous relating to clothes and hairstyle. However, at this time, colonial Western norms of behavior and thinking started to be adopted including the criminalization of homosexuality and sexuality being considered not a private matter but instead a part of social norms. You’d think that conclusion alone would send up a red flag about the dangers of Western norms being applied to non-Western societies. But that would have made for a very short report.

Next, it provides a summary of problematic areas in law, social customs, religion employment, housing, education, and health and well-being (which for some odd reason focuses on sexual-reassignment surgery). You can read the full report here, but I’ll highlight most of the areas the report singled out for you:

Even though Thailand’s Constitution prohibits discrimination, specific laws that refer to sexual orientation and gender identity do not exist. (As they also do not in the USA)

A proposal to include sexual identities under the anti-discrimination clause of the 2007 constitution
was rejected. (As was the 2007 constitution.)

Existing marriage laws specifically reference men and women, reflecting a traditional interpretation of gender and family structure.(As they still do in the majority of states in the USA.)

Legal and policy reform is seen as difficult both because lawmakers tend to be conservative, and because the constitution and country’s laws are seen as sacred.(Which is also a plank of the US Republican party’s platform, and the gospel truth according to the Tea Party.)

Although there is no overt persecution of LGBT people, Thai society does not wholly accept sexual and gender minorities. Attitudes towards LGBT individuals can be somewhat tolerant as long as LGBT people remain within certain social confines. Hostile attitudes may lurk below the surface of individuals and parts of society that do not express their views openly. (Sounds like America to me.)

There is a lack of understanding about the specific struggles and needs of LGBT people.(Ditto.)

Arguably, the greatest and often most important struggle that a Thai LGBT individual faces is that of religion.(Religious zealots against the rights of gays? Who’d have thought?)

The vast majority of Thais ascribe to Theravada Buddhism. This religion does have negative views of sexual orientation and gender identity that does not conform to social norms, viewing it either as a punishment for sins in past lives, or as a lack of ability to control sexual impulses and tendencies.(Yeah, bit at least they don’t confuse homosexuality with bestiality.)

Due to the gender roles Thais are expected to play in the workplace and in society at large, there were numerous accounts of LGBT people facing discrimination in employment settings. Many LGBT people, if possible, choose to remain closeted to avoid discrimination and stigma at work. For instance, there were multiple reports of LGBT individuals being denied promotions, being fired from their jobs after disclosing their sexual orientation, as well as being asked inappropriate questions during interviews and job screenings. (Welcome to the USA!)

Transgender people who cannot easily hide their identities suffer the most employment discrimination in Thailand, and are often limited to working in roles in hospitality, entertainment, or the sex work industry.(Also the traditional jobs for drag queens back home.)

The lack of relationship recognition also leads to same-sex couples having unequal status to heterosexual couples in areas such as the ability to access social services, spousal insurance and benefits, and joint bank loans.(‘Cuz that’s not al;so the law of the land in the USA)

There are reports of negative portrayals of LGBT people in school textbooks that label homosexuals as deviants. *Which is mandatory in Tennessee’s public schools.)

Sexual-reassignment surgery (SRS) is available in Thailand, with indication that Thailand performs the greatest number of male-to-female (MTF) SRS in the world. However, although MTF SRS is easily accessible in Thailand, female-to-male (FTM) SRS is not as easily accessible and as advanced. It is also more expensive. (Well, FTM SRS requires more plastic. And I’m not sure that indicating that Thailand performs the greatest number of male-to-female SRS in the world counts as a negative.)

In terms of legislation, transgender individuals cannot change their sex on legal documents regardless of whether or not they have undergone SRS.(Nor can they in the U.S. and Facebook won’t even allow them to use their new identities.)

While there is some appearance of acceptance for LGBT persons in Thai society, many face discrimination from family, education, media, legal, government, economic and religious structures, institutions and establishments. (As they never do everywhere else in the world.)

There is a great juxtaposition between how Thailand is portrayed globally as a haven for LGBT tourism and the actual acceptance of LGBT persons within Thailand itself. (Thank the gods we don’ have that problem back in the States!)

Thai media generally portrays LGBT people in a negative way, or as stock characters or comic relief on television shows. (But we award them Emmys for that in the U.S.)

The USAID/UNDP’s report concludes with a list of recommendations that will fix these problems for Thailand, such as The Ministry of Finance ensuring equal access to benefits and compensation for LGBT couples as heterosexual couples, The Ministry of Education protecting the basic rights of all students to equal access to education and protection from discrimination, the State and other relevant institutions to ensure equal access and rights to safe and affordable housing for LGBT individuals. school curriculums to include LGBT issues and awareness, etc., etc. etc, All of which would be great initiatives to recommend be implemented in the US and most other Western countries too.

The USAID/UNDP’s report is a product of a broader initiative entitled ‘Being LGBT in Asia, an initiative launched on Human Rights Day in December 2012 that seeks to promote understanding of the fundamental challenges faced by LGBT people and to document the progress being made in anti-discrimination efforts. It is It is currently being implemented in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Mongolia, Nepal, the Philippines, and Vietnam too.

Gay rights and promoting equality are certainly valuable issues that need to be supported and addressed, but I can save the USAID/UNDP a lot of time and effort: In all eight of the Asian countries the initiative has singled out you’ll find homophobia and discriminization exists, and laws and societal norms need to be changed to ensure gay citizens are afforded the same rights, protections, and treatment as anyone else. Just like you’ll find in 99.9% of Western countries. As for Thailand, pointing your finger at Gen. Prayuth’s version of a government is probably not a smart move. Affecting change by doing so is as likely to succeed as Jabba The Butt’s demand that Pattaya remains to be the armpit of the world that it is.

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