Thailand has long positioned itself as a champion of gender equality and made various pledges at the international level to protect women’s and LGBTI rights. However, the reality is that women and LGBTI activists in the country continue to face severe gender-based violence facilitated by digital technology.
While seen by Australians as an LGBTI friendly destination, Thai nationals often encounter a different reality. Recent moves to legalise same-sex marriage is a positive step, but true equality remains distant.
As festivities commence for the 2025 Sydney’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, a commemoration of LGBTI identity, Manun Wongmasoh, known as “Noon”, a 26-year-old Muslim Thai transgender woman and an LGBTI activist has been sharing her story.
Raised in a religious family in Nakhon Nayok province, central Thailand, Noon was inspired to become a human rights activist to address certain interpretations of Islamic principles that she believed had been misused to discriminate against LGBTI individuals in Thailand.
Her advocacy and lived experiences, including the significant challenges she faced as a transgender woman in Thailand’s conservative Muslim community, were recently featured in an Amnesty International report highlighting the effects of technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TfGBV) against women and LGBTI activists in Thailand. This is her story.
My father was a teacher of Islam, and I was raised in a Muslim household. Growing up, I regularly read the Qur’an and found that Islam teaches kindness and compassion. I still value the knowledge I have gained and continue to practise my faith, but I sometimes differ in my understanding of certain interpretations by the community.
Many people in my religion perceive being transgender as a sin. This is why I decided to stand up for myself, for my identity. I’m transgender, and I’m also a human. God is the only one who is entitled to judge me in the afterlife. This is what I’m fighting for.
I started this struggle because of my family. They have hurt me the most. I can take what other people say to me but when my family talks about me behind my back, that is the most painful thing. I was kicked out of the family home when I was in high school. I found a way to support myself, but it still hurts. Because of my gender, they decided not to support me.
My family tried conversion therapy for me. At the time, I was still in school. They sent me to a religious school. It was the saddest time of my life. I was bullied. I received a lot of verbal abuse. It was a very tough time for me. Being trans is not like having a flu that can be treated. Religion is not the problem, but it is the people who use it to oppress other people.
Since my dad passed away, my mum has started to accept who I am — but not my siblings. My siblings do not accept me.
“I went to my grandmother’s funeral. I had just finished my breast surgery. My elder brother beat me up and kicked me. My mum couldn’t protect me. It became very difficult for her as well. And I feel deeply scared.”
I went to my grandmother’s funeral. I had just finished my breast surgery. My elder brother beat me up and kicked me. My mum couldn’t protect me. It became very difficult for her as well. And I feel deeply scared. I can only see her when no one else is at home. It’s the only time I can spend time with my mum, when other people are not around.
I want to create a safe zone for LGBTI people, especially within the Muslim community. I’ve been affected a lot because I don’t have a comfort zone or safe space. I used to live in Thailand’s Deep South during my undergraduate studies. It’s a Malay Muslim-majority area and I have seen a lot of gender inequalities in how LGBTI people in this region faced mistreatment and discrimination.
When I started speaking out about safe spaces for LGBTI people in the community, someone printed my photo and distributed it to certain police forces. They said they would hurt me and even kill me if they see me in person. “You’ll get to see your death before the time comes”, they told me. I filed a complaint with the police, but they couldn’t do much, they just logged a record. I have been sexually harassed as well because of how I dress. Friends from middle school attacked me through my Facebook account. The comments are so harsh. My friend from the Deep South told me they had seen my photo being posted in community Facebook groups.
Most of them are men and super religious. Only a few women attacked me online, but it was mild, I could handle it. But the men — it was crazy. It was abusive.
There should also be a law to protect people from online harassment. I think it will be useful to protect marginalized people, ethnic groups and LGBTI people who are more vulnerable to online abuse. That’s why I want to see this law.
Government agencies have not helped. We have the Gender Equality Act. When I received death threats online, I would have wanted to file a complaint, but the law has a clause that allows for using religion to justify gender-based violence. We have been left with no option to seek any remedies or justice.
“We must talk about intersectionality and also safe spaces for LGBTI people. Online spaces are very important because it’s the easiest way to reach a lot of people and give them information. The challenge is that you cannot talk about anything online because we could face endless harassment and even death threats like I did.”
We must talk about intersectionality and also safe spaces for LGBTI people. Online spaces are very important because it’s the easiest way to reach a lot of people and give them information. The challenge is that you cannot talk about anything online because we could face endless harassment and even death threats like I did.
On top of such online abuse, we have the Computer Crimes Act and national security laws that have been used to silence activists and the public for expression and online protest. Criminal defamation, too, so you can’t talk about the people who violate your rights. For example, there is a case about another LGBTI activist, who assisted a survivor of sexual assault committed by a politician. The politician filed a defamation charge against her.
These problems are the reasons why I work with human rights organizations. I strongly believe that everyone’s rights must be respected, and I really hope one day that all LGBTI people, including those of us in the Muslim community, can have a safe space — both offline and online.
Learn more about ‘online violence’.
Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 10 million people who take injustice personally. We are campaigning for a world where human rights are enjoyed by all – and we can only do it with your support.
Act now or learn more about our women’s rights campaign.
