Summary:
Lebanon employs both de facto and explicit criminalization methods to penalize transgender expression, particularly targeting transgender women, as evidenced by various provisions in the Lebanese Penal Code. Recent developments indicate a rise in prejudice and violence against transgender and queer individuals in Beirut. This includes attacks by state-affiliated militia groups on spaces that cater to queer communities, which occurred in response to the introduction of a bill advocating for the decriminalization of homosexuality in parliament.
Lebanon has made gradual progress in terms of legal gender recognition, particularly since 2015 when a judge emphasized the significance of transitioning while approving a plaintiff’s request to change their gender markers on official identification documents. Nonetheless, obstacles to accessing these changes persist. Moreover, the availability of gender-affirming healthcare in Lebanon remains unprohibited and comparatively more accessible than in other Middle Eastern countries. However, the dominance of privatized healthcare has limited options for medical transitioning due to the lack of affordable alternatives.
Criminalization:
Explicit: Gender non-conforming expression is criminalized both explicitly and through the usage of vague morality laws. Article 521 of the Lebanese Penal Code specifically targets transgender women but can be used to punish gender nonconformity when used in combination with other morality laws.
- Article 521 of the Lebanese Penal Code:
Any man who wears the uniform of a woman or has entered a place belonging to women or is prohibited from entering it at the time of the act to non-women shall be liable to a term of up to six months of imprisonment.
- Article 530 of the Lebanese Penal Code:
The banishment from the country and the freedom to be monitored upon judgement of a misdemeanor provided for in this revelation, and the disclosure of location.
- Article 531 of the Lebanese Penal Code:
Defying public morals by one of the means mentioned in article 209, paragraph 1, is punishable by one month to one year of imprisonment.
- Article 532 of the Lebanese Penal Code (Amended 27/5/1993):
Defying public morals by one of the means mentioned in article 209, paragraphs 2 and 3, is punishable by one month to one year of imprisonment and a fine of 20,000 to 200,000 liras.
- Article 533 of the Lebanese Penal Code:
The same penalties shall be imposed on anyone who makes, exports, supplies or acquires writings, drawings, manual or solar photographs, sign films or other disturbing objects for the purpose of trading, distributing, advertising or informing of the manner in which they are obtained.
- Article 534 of the Lebanese Penal Code:
Any intercourse contrary to nature shall be punishable by up to one year’s imprisonment.
Enforcement:
- Metn Court, 25/6/2014: On June 25, 2014, a judge from the Metn Court rendered a verdict of not guilty for a trans woman and her partner who were accused of engaging in “unnatural sexual intercourse.” This landmark case marked the first instance in which a judge recognized and upheld an individual’s right to self-identify their gender, thereby establishing a crucial legal precedent to prevent transgender individuals from being prosecuted under Article 534. Previously, law enforcement authorities and legal entities in the Metn region had relied on the woman’s biological sex and the gender designation on her identification card as evidence in support of the charges.
- In their research, local Lebanese Civil Society Organizations and NGOs reported documenting the torture and mistreatment of transgender people who are arrested and charged with Article 521, other vague morality laws, or with no legal basis. As such, these cases are formally underreported, but occur on a regular basis.
Legal Gender Recognition:
While legal gender recognition is a possibility in Lebanon, the absence of a defined procedure for doing so has resulted in the decision-making being left to the discretion of individual judges. The lack of a standardized process creates various obstacles that impede access to legal gender recognition. These obstacles include excessively long waiting times for responses from courts and their administrations, as well as the reliance on the probability of having a more tolerant judge presiding over transgender cases.
Name Change:
Transgender individuals who seek to change their legal name may do so through amending legal documents such as birth certificates before the Personal Status courts.
- Article 21 of Ordinance 8837 of 1932:
“An entry listed in the registry can only be corrected by virtue of a ruling from a competent court, issued in the presence of the civil registry officer or their representative, except in the case of entries subject to change such as profession, confession, religion, place of residence and the like, such entries being corrected by civil registry offices without the need for a court ruling.”
Gender Marker Change:
Despite Article 21 of Ordinance 8837 of 1932 not explicitly mentioning the ability to change a name or gender marker, legal precedent shows that members of the judiciary have interpreted it as such. This legal procedure necessitates that a plaintiff file a lawsuit against the state for the “error” in assigning their sex, which is deemed to be a clerical mistake, and subsequently request the rectification of their documents. In order to successfully modify a gender marker on identifying documents, the court mandates that the plaintiff’s legal representation demonstrate that the sex listed for the plaintiff in the census registry is incongruent with the sex the plaintiff identifies with.
Although the terminology of “correcting” a gender marker may carry certain implications, the process has recently extended beyond individuals who are intersex or have a medical need for transitioning. It can now also accommodate individuals seeking to align their gender identity with specific circumstances.
Case law in Legal Gender Recognition:
- Ruling No. 1123/2015: On December 12, 2014, Plaintiff X was denied his request to change the recorded gender on his identifying documents. The Magistrate’s argument was based on the fact that Plaintiff X had chosen to seek transition voluntarily, rather than due to medical necessity or intersex status. Plaintiff X filed a petition to appeal this ruling, and on September 3, 2015, his request was accepted on the following grounds:
- Correcting a discrepancy between a reality stemming from a medical need (Gender Dysphoria) and personal status records is considered a correctable error.
- Recognition of an individual’s right to privacy and self-determination, as well as their right to seek necessary treatment for psychological or physical conditions. This statement also rejects the previous judgment’s dismissal of transitioning as merely an “individual desire.”
- Ultimately, the court ruled that Article 21 is not restricted to only correcting errors because of material misplacement of factual events, but also for altered circumstances – bringing the registry closer to the realities of the person they’re describing.
- Ruling No. 61 (1992): On May 5, 1992, the Court of First Instance of Beirut rejected Plaintiff ‘s request to change her gender marker on her legal identification documents. The basis of this decision was that Plaintiff ‘s personal choices did not legally justify a gender transition, such as having intersex traits or a medical necessity for surgery.
- Ruling No. 3 (1987): On July 1, 1987, the Court of First Instance of Beirut granted Plaintiff Z’s request to change her gender marker on her identifying documents. This decision was based on the fact that she was intersex and needed her gender identity to align with her physical appearance.
Gender Affirming Healthcare:
There are no laws prohibiting access to gender-affirming healthcare, though many have conflated a legal text on medical ethics about sex change surgeries as evidence of its explicit criminalization.
- Law 288/1994 (Amended in 2012): Chapter 2 “Medical Trials, Organ Implants, and Artificial Insemination” Article 30(9 and 11) of Medical Ethic Law:
(30/9) No medical procedures shall be conducted that would result in the patient’s mutilation, except in cases of emergency and extreme necessity with the patient’s consent, or if the patient is unable to provide consent. Only a surgeon is authorized to determine the necessity of emergency treatment and perform an operation that would result in distortion of the patient’s consent requirement, provided that the surgeon is aware of the consent from the patient’s relatives, if available..
(30/11): Any medical or surgical treatment resulting in a sex change and affecting the patient’s future is classified as mutilation.
A comprehensive analysis of the aforementioned texts reveals that gender-affirming healthcare is not prohibited by law in Lebanon. Although Article 30(5) deems sex changes as unethical medical practices, Article 30(4) clarifies that gender-affirming surgeries are exempt from being labeled as “mutilation” when patient and/or family consent is obtained. Consequently, any treatment pursued by transgender individuals is deemed lawful as long as their consent is granted.
However, Lebanon lacks government programs that offer gender-affirming healthcare services to transgender individuals. The only available option is to seek such healthcare through private institutions, which can be both costly and exacerbate discrimination in areas such as housing, employment, and other facets of healthcare as people transition. Furthermore, the prevailing economic crisis in Lebanon has compelled many transgender individuals to defer seeking medical attention until it becomes absolutely necessary, often resulting in medical complications. In spite of these challenges, Lebanon stands out for its relatively widespread, though limited accessibility to gender-affirming healthcare.
Fatwas:
Lebanon’s sectarian nature results in multiple Muslim religious sources from different sects delivering various fatwas with different opinions on transgender expression. However, religion is not a source of legislation in Lebanon and no religion can influence the legal status of gender identity in Lebanon.