In a step back for LGBTQ+ rights, Thailand has officially ruled against marriage equality within its constitution.
According to a report from the Washington Blade, the Constitutional Court sided with Section 1448 of the country’s Civil and Commercial Code.
Under the law, it says that marriage is between a man and a woman and does not grant marital rights to same-sex partnerships.
The controversial ruling comes after the advocacy group, Foundation of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Rights, filed a lawsuit challenging the code.
Alongside their ruling, the court encouraged government officials to “draft laws that guarantee the rights for gender diverse people.”
Shortly after the verdict was made public, LGBTQ+ activists expressed their disappointment with the court.
According to a report from Coconut Bangkok, author and historian Chanun said the verdict was like “discrimination within discrimination.”
“It makes the institution of marriage look feudal and something bound only to male and female,” Chanun said.
The decision has also prompted LGBTQ+ advocacy groups like Free Gender Thailand to plan a protest to fight the decision on 28 November.
Months before the constitutional court’s verdict, Thailand approved a draft bill that would legalise same-sex civil partnerships.
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