1946 in LGBT Rights

In 1946, there were 3 recorded legal changes made affecting LGBT people. In the previous year, there were 11 changes made and 9 in the following year. A total of 70 legal changes were made in the 1940s.

  • May 25
    Homosexual activity becomes illegal (imprisonment as punishment).
    When Jordan gained its independence, it still retained the British Mandate Criminal Code that punished homosexuality with up to 10 years in prison.
  • March 19
    Censorship of LGBT issues becomes state-enforced.
    The Police Act of 1945 contains Section 35(c) which criminalises people covering their faces or otherwise disguising themselves between sunset and sunrise “who are unable to give a satisfactory account of himself”. This law has been used arbitrarily to target transgender people in Myanmar for their gender expression. Additionally, LGBTIQ+ websites have been blocked in 2012. Since the 2021 coup, the government has been using the guise of anti terrorism laws to arrest LGBT activists and peaceful protesters.
  • (date unknown)
    Same-sex marriage becomes banned.
    Family laws from 1999 and 2003 in Article 5 define marriage as a legally regulated life union of a man and a woman. The 1990 Constitution did not define marriage: "Marriage and legal relations in marriage, cohabitation and family are regulated by law" (Article 61). The Article 1 of the 1946 law, marriage was explicitly and lapidary defined as a "legally regulated community of life between a man and a woman"

LGBT Organizations Founded in 1946

  • COC Nederland FaviconCOC Nederland
    COC Nederland (officially: Federation COC Netherlands) or COC for short, is a Dutch interest organisation for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and Intersex individuals. By…