Yesterday, May 17, was International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOT). Advocates from many LGBT communities gathered at Bunderan HI to mark the occasion and raise awareness about the challenges facing LGBT individuals in Indonesia.
The challenges faced by LGBT individuals in Indonesia are huge. A recent survey conducted by gay rights advocacy group Arus Pelangi showed that the vast majority of LGBT people in Indonesia face not only enormous social pressure but also constant threats of violence as well.
According to their survey, about 89.3% of LGBT individuals in Indonesia have experienced some form of violence due to their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.
Breaking that down, about 79.1 percent of respondents said they had experienced psychological abuse, 46.3 percent said they had been physically assaulted, 45.1 had been the victims of sexual assault, and 63.3 percent had endured cultural violence. Most had experienced violence since a young age in the form of bullying at school.
As many as 17.3 percent of LGBT individuals in Indonesia reported that they had thought about suicide, and 16.4 percent had attempted suicide more than once. In this study it was noted that, male-to-female transgenders are the most vulnerable to physical and psychological violence.
“Violence against LGBTIQ individuals comes in a wide variety of forms, including cultural violence such as forcing transgendered individuals to wear certain kinds of clothing or forcing them to marry. It’s a violation of their rights,” said Anna Arifin, program manager at Arus Pelangi, as quoted by BeritaSatu.
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