The Dangers Of Being LGBT In ‘Tolerant’ Philippines

The Philippines has one of worst records of violence against the trans community. The murders of 29 transgender people have been documented in the Philippines since 2008, according to the TvT project, which monitors and analyzes cases of transphobia worldwide. This is the highest number in the Southeast Asian region, and the second highest in Asia -- though activists say that many murders of trans people go unreported in the country, so the number is likely much higher.

The trans community is not the only LGBT group that has experienced violence in the Philippines. There were at least “28 LGBT-related killings” in the country in the first half of 2011 alone, according to a 2014 UNDP/USAID report. These troubling statistics offer a glimpse into the marginalization and abuse that the LGBT community faces in the predominantly-Catholic archipelago.

On the surface, the Philippines may appear to be one of the more “liberal” ASEAN countries when it comes to the LGBT community.
,,,
However, although “there is high tolerance here, there’s not real acceptance,” Ging Cristobal, a Manila-based activist with the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission, tells The Huffington Post.

Legal recognition and protection of LGBT people at the national level largely remains absent.

The Dangers Of Being LGBT In ‘Tolerant’ Philippines