Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Suriname may face legal challenges not experienced by non-

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...

residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Suriname. Since 2015, hate speech and discrimination in employment and the provision of goods and services on the basis of sexual orientation has been banned in the country.

Same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

and

civil union A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...

s are not recognised by law. Nevertheless, Suriname is legally bound to the January 2018 Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruling, which held that same-sex marriage is a human right protected by the

American Convention on Human Rights The American Convention on Human Rights, also known as the Pact of San José, is an international human rights instrument. It was adopted by many countries in the Western Hemisphere in San José, Costa Rica, on 22 November 1969. It came into for ...

. While homosexuality tends to be viewed as a taboo topic, the situation and attitudes have slowly changed in recent years.

Legality of same-sex sexual activity

Same-sex sexual activity has been legal in Suriname since 1869. The age of consent for heterosexual intercourse is 16, while the age of consent for homosexual intercourse is 18.

Recognition of same-sex relationships

s or domestic partnerships are not possible in Suriname.

Discrimination protections

In March 2015, the Government introduced hate speech legislation which includes sexual orientation as a ground for non-discrimination complaints. Specifically, articles 175, 175a and 176 of the Surinamese Penal Code were updated to include sexual orientation.Suriname Should Do the Right Thing on LGBT Rights at the UN
/ref> Violation of this law can result in a prison sentence of up to one year or a fine. In addition, articles 176c and 500a forbid discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment and the provision of goods and services. Despite the protective legislation, the LGBT community continues to face discrimination from society. In 2014, the Government explicitly excluded LGBT people from a social security legislation. According to the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

, some members of Parliament and the then-Vice President spoke out openly against LGBT persons, comparing homosexuality to a "disease" and inciting hatred and violence. Additionally, in 2015, there were reports of societal discrimination against the LGBT community in the areas of employment and housing.SURINAME 2015 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT
/ref>

Gender identity and expression

In January 2017, the ''Eerste Kantongerecht'' (one of 3 Courts of First Instance in Suriname) granted a transgender woman the right to have her gender formally changed with the Central Bureau of Civil Affairs and ordered the registry to officially change her registration to reflect her amended status. The Association of Pentecostal Churches in Suriname (VVPES) and the Suriname Islamic Association (SIV), which had protested against and opposed the right to recognize a gender change, indicated they would "accept the verdict". In February 2017, the Central Bureau of Civil Affairs formally appealed the court ruling. In January 2022, the Suriname Court of Appeal ruled in favor and ordered the gender change on the birth certificate of the transgender woman who had undergone

sex reassignment surgery Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a transgender or transsexual person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their identified gender, and a ...

in 2009.

Activism

Suriname's first public gay rights march took place on 11 October 2011 (

National Coming Out Day National Coming Out Day (NCOD) is an annual LGBT awareness day observed on October 11, to support lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people ( the LGBT community, sometimes also called the queer community) in " coming out of the closet". Fi ...

, in

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

) in

Paramaribo Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname' ...

, following MP Ronny Asabina's comments against homosexuality in June. Two members of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

, including Harish Monorath, attended the event. It was partly organized by

Suriname Men United Suriname Men United (SMU) is a non-governmental organization (NGO) established under national Surinamese law with the overall objective to improve the well-being of men who have sex with men (MSM) in Suriname. To realize its goal, SMU carries out ...

, the largest gay men's organization in the country. Other LGBT groups include PAREA and the LGBT Platform Suriname. Both are active in raising awareness of LGBT people, organising seminars with the police force on recognizing anti-LGBT violence, and pressing for the legal recognition of same-sex couples.Gay Life in Suriname
/ref> In late 2016, Justice Minister

Jennifer van Dijk-Silos Jennifer Victorine van Dijk-Silos (born 13 December 1954) is a Surinamese politician of the National Democratic Party. She was Minister of Justice and Police between August 2015 and March 2017. Career In August 2015 Van Dijk-Silos was appointed a ...

organized several public hearings in collaboration with civil society in Suriname to discuss the expansion of the rights of LGBT people.

Public opinion

A 2010 opinion poll carried out by

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

showed that 10.3% of the Surinamese population supported same-sex marriage. In May 2015,

PlanetRomeo Romeo (until 2021 PlanetRomeo) is a social network for gay, bisexual, queer and transgender people. The site was started as a hobby and was called GayRomeo in October 2002 by Planetromeo GmbH in Berlin, Germany. Initially only available in Germ ...

, an LGBT social network, published its first Gay Happiness Index (GHI). Gay men from over 120 countries were asked about how they feel about society's view on homosexuality, how do they experience the way they are treated by other people and how satisfied are they with their lives. Suriname was ranked 46th with a GHI score of 48.The Gay Happiness Index. The very first worldwide country ranking, based on the input of 115,000 gay men
Planet Romeo

Summary table

References

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