Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Tonga 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. Homosexuality is illegal in

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

, with a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment, but the law is not enforced. Tongan society is very socially conservative and highly religious. The Tongan Government requires all religious references on broadcast media to conform to mainstream Christian beliefs. The mixture of conservative values and colonial-era laws has resulted in a climate of fear, discrimination and homophobia for LGBT people. Along with

Kiribati Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),Kiribati
''The Wor ...

, Tonga is the only

Polynesia Polynesia () "many" and νῆσος () "island"), to, Polinisia; mi, Porinihia; haw, Polenekia; fj, Polinisia; sm, Polenisia; rar, Porinetia; ty, Pōrīnetia; tvl, Polenisia; tkl, Polenihia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, made up of ...

n country that has not signed or expressed support for the 2011 " joint statement on ending acts of violence and related human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity" at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

, which condemns violence and discrimination against LGBT people. Many gay and lesbian Tongans emigrate to Australia or

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

in order to live a more open life that they may not get to experience in their native land.

History

Tonga, much like the rest of

, used to be tolerant of same-sex relationships and transgender people before the arrival of Christianity. The arrival of the European missionaries in the late 18th century quickly changed societal acceptance, and the first anti-gay laws in Tonga were enacted. The missionaries converted the local population to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

Fakaleiti

Traditionally, Tongan culture has been supportive of

transgender people This list consists of many notable people who are transgender. The individual listings note the subject's nationality and main occupation. In some non-Western, ancient or medieval societies, transgender people may be seen as a different gend ...

in the form of the '' fakaleiti'' (also known as the ; literally ''like a lady''). The , similarly to the '' fa'afafine'' of

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

and the ''

māhū ' ('in the middle') in Native Hawaiian and Tahitian cultures are third gender people with traditional spiritual and social roles within the culture, similar to Tongan ' and Samoan '. Historically māhū were assigned male at birth (AMAB), but in ...

'' of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

, are people who were born male but act, dress and behave as female. They have traditionally been accepted by Tongan society. However, in modern times, Tonga has a powerful religious community, and recently has seen a rise in

fundamentalism Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguish ...

and

religious fanaticism Religious fanaticism, or religious extremism, is a pejorative designation used to indicate uncritical zeal or obsessive enthusiasm which is related to one's own, or one's group's, devotion to a religion – a form of human fanaticism which cou ...

. As such, the tend to face regular discrimination and stigma, despite being an integral part of Tongan culture. Cross-dressing is illegal in Tonga under laws inherited by the former

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

. The traditionally would play an important domestic role in Tonga communal life, and would often be called upon to aid the royal family. Despite discrimination and harassment, the community organises an annual transgender beauty pageant competition called the Miss Galaxy Pageant, which is sponsored by the Tonga Government and local businesses.

Legality of same-sex sexual activity

Male consensual same-sex sexual activity, as well as heterosexual sodomy, is illegal in

under the ''Criminal Offences Act'' ( to, Lao ki he Ngaahi Hia) with a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment. The offenders may also be whipped as a punishment if convicted. :Section 136. Sodomy and bestiality. Whoever shall be convicted of the crime of sodomy with another person ... shall be liable at the discretion of the Court to be imprisoned for any period not exceeding ten years....

Male rape A proportion of victims of rape or other sexual violence incidents are male. Historically, rape was thought to be, and defined as, a crime committed solely against females. This belief is still held in some parts of the world, but rape of male ...

is also illegal in Tonga: :Section 137. Assault with intent to commit sodomy. It is an offence for a person to assault another person with intent to commit sodomy. :Section 138. Indecent assault on man. It is an offence for a person to make an indecent assault on a man. :Section 139. Attempted sodomy, indecent assault upon a male. Whoever shall attempt to commit the said abominable crime of sodomy or shall be guilty of an assault with intent to commit the same or of any indecent assault upon any male person shall be liable at the direction of the Court to imprisonment for any term not exceeding 10 years. :Section 140. Evidence. On the trial of any person upon a charge of sodomy or carnal knowledge it shall not be necessary to prove the actual emission of seed but the offence shall be deemed complete on proof of penetration only. :Section 142. Whipping for certain offences. Whenever any male person shall be convicted of any offence against sections ... 136 and 139 of this Act the Court may, in its discretion in lieu of or in addition to any sentence of imprisonment authorised under this Act order the person so convicted to be whipped in accordance with the provisions of section 31 of this Act.

Decriminalisation efforts

In late 2016, the Tonga Leitis Association, an LGBT advocacy group, launched a national consultation with governments officials in order to decriminalise homosexuality and cross-dressing. According to the Attorney General, there have, as of 2016, never been any sodomy convictions on consensual same-sex activity.

Recognition of same-sex relationships

does not recognize same-sex unions in any form.

Discrimination protections

Tongan law does not address discrimination on account of

sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. These attractions are generall ...

gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent, and consistent with the ...

in employment or the provision of goods and services. The ''Judicial Code of Conduct 2010'' states that "a judge shall be aware of, and understand, diversity in society and differences arising from various sources, including but not limited to race, colour, sex, religion, national origin, caste, disability, age, marital status, sexual orientation, social and economic status and other like causes ("irrelevant grounds")." The legislation prohibits judges from "manifest ngbias or prejudice towards any person or group on irrelevant grounds."

Living conditions

Tongan society is very socially conservative and highly religious. In addition, it has recently seen a rise in

and

, which has been associated with an increase in hatred and discrimination towards LGBT people and ''fakaleitis''. Much like the rest of Polynesia,

public displays of affection Public displays of affection (PDA) are acts of physical intimacy in the view of others. What is an acceptable display of affection varies with respect to culture and context. Some organizations have rules limiting or prohibiting public display ...

tend to be frowned upon, regardless of sexual orientation.

Activism

There is an LGBT association known as the Tonga Leitis Association, which is headed by Joey Mataele, an influential individual in Tongan society. In 2018,

Cyclone Gita Severe Tropical Cyclone Gita was the most intense tropical cyclone to impact Tonga since reliable records began. The second named storm and first major tropical cyclone of the 2017–18 South Pacific cyclone season, Gita originated from a monso ...

, which destroyed the Tonga parliament building, damaged the organisation's drop-in centre and shelter. The 2012 Summer Olympics flag-bearer for Tonga was openly gay Amini Fonua. Fonua has become an advocate for LGBT rights, speaking with Tongan government officials about the need to reform Tonga's colonial-era laws that criminalise homosexuality. In 2018, Frederica Tuita Filipe, daughter of Princess Royal

Salote Mafileʻo Pilolevu Tuita Princess Royal Salote Mafile'o Pilolevu, The Honourable Lady Tuita (nee Sālote Mafileʻo Pilolevu Tuku'aho; born on 14 November 1951) is a Tongan princess and member of the Tongan Royal Family. Early life and education Salote was born at th ...

, expressed her opposition to homophobia and discrimination.

Statistics

According to 2017 estimates from

UNAIDS The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) (, ONUSIDA) is the main advocate for accelerated, comprehensive and coordinated global action on the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The mission of UNAIDS is to lead, strengthen and support an ...

, there were about 400 transgender people in Tonga.

Summary table

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lgbt Rights In Tonga Politics of Tonga Human rights in Tonga Society of Tonga LGBT in Tonga