Helem, Arabic acronym for “Lebanese Protection for Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgenders, has been awarded the 2009 Felipa de Souza Award:
The Award recognizes the courage and effectiveness of groups or leaders dedicated to improving the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgenders, intersex (LGBTI) and other individuals stigmatized and abused because of their sexuality or HIV status.
However, the announcement was overshadowed by a gay bashing incident in Beirut:
Two gay men were having sex in the lobby of an uninhabited building in Ashrafieh, a suburb of Beirut, when they were discovered by Lebanese Army soldiers, dragged out into the street and severely beaten.
I am all for gay rights and the freedom for people to do as they please in the privacy of their own homes, but I really don’t believe the actions taken by these men was appropriate. Even if it was a heterosexual act, this would still be disgraceful. However, the beating was unnecessary and the Army (in its truest form) should not be responsible for policing the state. These men will most likely be charged under Lebanon’s Article 534 which bans “sexual acts of an unnatural nature”, whatever that means.
From Wikipedia:
Article 534 of the Lebanese Penal Code prohibits having sexual relations that are “contradicting the laws of nature,” which is punishable by up to a year in prison. This prohibits male homosexuality, along with adultery, sodomy and fornication, while for females, lesbian sexual activities are not illegal, because they do not involve penetration.
As a practical matter, enforcement of the law is varied and often occurs through occasional police harassment and arrests. In 2002, the police broke into a woman’s house after her mother claimed that her daughter had stolen some money and jewelery. Upon entering the house, the police found the woman having sexual relations with another woman and charged them both with the crime of sodomy. Other arrests of gay couples, or police raids of nightclubs where gay men patronize, are frequently reported in local newspapers.
Helem is working through the political system to amend the article and they’ve mentioned that they have the support of a number of political parties, however, no party is willing to stand up and publicly admit it. Hopefully this issue will be tackled once the elections are over (kind of a long shot though).