Taiwan Hosts Biggest In-Person Pride Of Post-Covid 2020
Taiwan has hosted the world’s biggest in-person celebration of gay rights since the pandemic started, with an estimated 130,00 people attending the LGBT+ Pride parade.
This turnout reinforced Taiwan’s image as a beacon of gay rights in Asia and one of the world’s safest places in the coronavirus era.
“I feel that Taiwan has really set an example, to be able to have a normal life and also to continue with this Pride event even though the world is not able to come this year,” said Eve Teo, 34, who lives in Taipei.
This year, most gay pride events have been either cancelled or moved online, but Taiwan’s parade kicked off from outside Taipei City Hall, as scheduled, on the last Saturday in October.
Organisers said they expected it to be the biggest Pride event to take place this year since the World Health Organisation declared a global pandemic in March.
According to ‘NBC News’, the event was a colourful testament to Taiwan’s successful control of the coronavirus. The island of 24 million people has seen just 554 confirmed Covid-19 cases, including seven deaths, and no lockdowns. Taiwan’s last locally transmitted infection was recorded in April.
Liu Chun-chieh, 34, who works in e-commerce and was dressed as a Greek warrior, said the event was important for the region at large.
“Taiwan just legalized same-sex marriage last year, and there still hasn’t been a second country in Asia to do so, so I think this parade is really important for Asia,” Liu said. “We first reached the milestone, and we can help others to march forward and take the next step, and make more people in Asia care about this aspect of human rights.”
Democratic Taiwan is a trailblazer for gay rights in Asia. In May last year, it became the first — and still only — place in Asia to legalise same-sex marriage. Since then, more than 4,000 same-sex couples have tied the knot in Taiwan.
Even though gay men and women have the right to marry in Taiwan, activists say discriminatory attitudes still need to change as well as the law. In one example, a Taiwanese person can only marry a foreigner of the same sex if same-sex marriage is also legal in the foreigner’s home country.
Last week, two gay couples were, for the first time, among dozens taking part in the Taiwan army’s annual mass wedding ceremony. The army posted on Facebook wedding photos of the couples, and those of the two female soldiers and their civilian partners by far received the most likes from the public.
“You defend our country, we defend your freedom,” read one comment.
Read related myGwork articles here:
Taiwan Pride: We’re “Marching For The World”
Taiwan’s LGBT+ Streaming Platform GagaOOLala Launches Worldwide
3,000 Weddings in Taiwan Since Same-Sex Marriage Introduced
Taiwan’s First Pride After Legalisation Of Gay Marriage Was A Huge Success
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