LGBT rights in Iran
| LGBT rights in Iran | |
|---|---|
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| Same-sex sexual activity legal? | Illegal: Islamic Sharia Law is applied |
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Penalty:
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Execution (see below) |
| Gender identity/expression | Sex reassignment surgery (male to female) partially paid for by the government |
| Discrimination protections | No |
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Iran face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are illegal.
LGBT rights in Iran have come in conflict with the penal code since the 1930s.Homosexuality is a crime punishable by imprisonment,corporal punishment, or by execution. Gay men have faced stricter enforcement actions under the law than lesbians. However, it is disputed as to whether the executions of Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni, or three other men executed in 2011 in Khuzestan province were punishment for other crimes or carried out specifically because of their homosexuality.
Any type of sexual activity outside a heterosexual marriage is forbidden. Transsexuality in Iran is legal if accompanied by a sex change operation, with Iran carrying out more sex-change operations than any other country in the world after Thailand. These surgeries are typically partially funded by the state – there have been claims that some homosexual men may have been pressured to undergo them both by government and society. Transsexuals still report societal intolerance as in other societies around the world.
The Islamic Penal Code of the Islamic Republic of Iran provides the following on same-sex sexual intercourse:
Chapter Two- Livat, Tafkhiz, and Musaheqeh
Article 233- Livat is defined as penetration of a man’s sex organ (penis), up to the point of circumcision, into another male person’s anus.
Article 234- The hadd punishment for livat shall be the death penalty for the insertive/active party if he has committed livat by using force, coercion, or in cases where he meets the conditions for ihsan; otherwise, he shall be sentenced to one hundred lashes. The hadd punishment for the receptive/passive party, in any case (whether or not he meets the conditions for ihsan) shall be the death penalty.
Note 1- If the insertive/active party is a non-Muslim and the receptive/passive party is a Muslim, the hadd punishment for the insertive/active party shall be the death penalty.
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