Backlash following Parliamentarians’ efforts to explicitly decriminalize same-sex intercourse

In July 2023, nine members of parliament submitted a draft law to repeal article 534 of the penal code which punishes “any sexual intercourse contrary to the order of nature” with up to one year in prison. They then faced online harassment from political and religious figures, leading one parliament member to withdraw his signature from the draft law.

Subsequently, the culture minister and another parliament member proposed two bills explicitly criminalizing same-sex conduct and the promotion of homosexuality by a fine or a prison sentence of up to three years. Reporters Without Borders appealed to the Lebanese government and parliament to withdraw these proposals and to abstain from using sexual mores as a pretext for cracking down on the media.

See : Amnesty International, L’Orient Today , Reporters Without Borders