《经济学人》：东南亚国家对同性婚姻的容忍度高吗？

《经济学人》：东南亚国家对同性婚姻的容忍度高吗？

原文标题：

Gay rights

Pride and groom

South-East Asians are becoming more relaxed about same-sex relationships

同志的权力

骄傲与新郎

东南亚国家对于同性关系越来越包容

Lawmakers are catching up with public attitudes

立法者紧跟舆论风向

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It was a beautiful spot for a wedding.

对于举办婚礼来说，这是个很美的地方。

In the hills of Antipolo, a city east of Manila, the Philippines’ capital, friends and family of Jownie Reyes and Josh Prado Tupaz (pictured) gathered to celebrate the holy union of the two men.

在菲律宾首都马尼拉以东的安提波罗市，乔尼·雷耶斯和乔什·普拉多·图帕斯（如图）的朋友和家人聚集在山上，共同庆祝两人的神圣结合。

Mr Tupaz, keeping his cool in a white suit, matching fur stole and glittering tiara despite the 34-degree heat, posed for photographs with his squad of bridesmaids, all in matching blue gowns.Then the ceremony began.

图帕斯穿着白色西装非常英俊帅气，尽管顶着34度的高温，但他依然配上毛皮披肩，戴着闪亮的头冠，与身穿蓝色长袍的伴娘团一起合影。随后，婚礼开始了。

Reverend Crescencio Agbayani, a gay priest and activist, led a service involving both Catholic and Protestant rites.

牧师克雷森西奥·阿巴亚尼（一名同性恋牧师和活动家）用天主教和新教的礼仪主持这场婚礼仪式。

The grooms declared their vows through tears.

新郎们含泪宣誓。

“If you’re gay, being in love is a joke to many…or worse, you are a secret,” said Mr Reyes, “You love me out loud without disgrace.”

“如果你是同性恋的话，那么你的感情生活对于很多人来说就是个笑话…或者连笑话都不如，你就是个不能说的秘密，” 雷耶斯说，“但你却能毫不掩饰地大声说爱我。”

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Ceremonies like this are happening in countries across South-East Asia. They carry no legal weight, but they are often officiated by religious or local leaders.

东南亚许多国家都正在上演这类结婚典礼。虽不被法律承认，却常有宗教人士或当地大人物主持仪式。

In Cambodia couples can sign documents that outline mutual obligations and shared ownership of assets.It is a symbolic protection rather than an enforceable marriage contract.

在柬埔寨，同性配偶双方可以签署阐明共同义务和财产共同所有权的文件。这只是一种象征性的保护，并不是一种有法律效力的婚姻契约。

But it gives couples an excuse to throw a traditional wedding ceremony, with local officials and monks in attendance and guests tying red string around the wrists of the spouses.

但这却给新人们提供了一个举办传统婚礼的由头，届时有当地官员和僧人出席他们的婚礼，并由宾客们为新人的手腕上系上红线。

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The ceremonies reflect changing social mores.

这些婚礼反映了社会习俗的变迁。

Fully 73% of Filipinos think that society should accept homosexuality; 70% of Vietnamese say they would be happy to have gay neighbours.

足足有73%的菲律宾人认为社会应该接受同性恋；70%的越南人说他们乐意接受同性恋作为邻居。

In Thailand 91% of people polled in June said they would accept a gay person in their family.

在泰国6月份的民意调查中，91%的人表示他们能接受同性恋家庭成员。

Reverend Agbayani in Antipolo has officiated at services for around 3,000 couples since he was ordained in 2008.

阿巴亚尼自2008年被任命成为牧师以来，他已经为3000对新人证过婚。

“Fifteen years ago people in the provinces were curious. Now they see it as ordinary.”

“15年前，全国各地的人还都对此感到好奇。如今他们已经习以为常了。”

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Lawmakers are slowly catching up.

立法者们正在逐渐加快他们的步伐。

In 2019 the Philippine Supreme Court rejected a petition to declare the ban on gay marriage unconstitutional, but acknowledged that same-sex couples deserve some legal recognition.

2019年，菲律宾最高法院驳回了将同性婚姻合法化的请愿书，但认为同性关系应该获得一些法律上的认可。

The same year two bills seeking to institute civil unions between same-sex couples were introduced to the Philippine Congress.

同年，菲律宾国会收到了两项同性婚姻的议案。

Vietnam lifted a ban on same-sex marriages in 2015. Cambodia committed in 2019 to amending its constitution to ensure marriage equality.

2015年，越南解除了同性婚姻的禁令。2019年，柬埔寨承诺将修改宪法，以保障婚姻平等。

Thailand’s cabinet sent a same-sex union bill to Parliament on June 7th.

今年6月7日，泰国内阁向议会提交了一份同性婚姻法案。

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Increasing acceptance is not limited to same-sex unions.

越来越高的容忍度不仅体现在允许同性婚姻，还体现在更多方面。

More than 20 municipalities in the Philippines have passed anti-discrimination rules.A bill prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity is being considered at a national level, too.

例如，菲律宾有20多个城市通过了反歧视的规定。而且国家层级也正在讨论一项法案，以禁止基于性取向或性别认同的歧视。

Labour laws in Thailand already forbid discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

泰国的《劳工法》已经禁止基于性取向的歧视。

In 2015 the government gave similar protections to expressions of gender identity.

2015年，泰国政府对于性别认同方面的发声也给予了类似的保护。

That decision has been particularly useful for trans people.

这个决定对跨性别者尤其有益。

In 2016 Nada Chaiyajit, a trans woman in Bangkok, won a case against her university, which had refused to issue a graduation certificate because her photograph showed her presenting as female, when her legal gender is male.

2016年，曼谷的一位变性女纳达·查亚吉特在与大学的官司中胜诉。官司的起因是照片中是女性，而法律性别为男性，因此她所念的大学拒绝为她颁发毕业证书。

That encouraged trans people at other universities to challenge similar rules, she says.

她说，这鼓励了其他大学的跨性别者去质疑类似的规定。

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Not all countries in the region are similarly accommodating.

并非东南亚所有的国家都对此这么包容。

Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Sri Lanka still maintain laws introduced by British colonial officials that criminalise sex between men.

马来西亚、缅甸、新加坡和斯里兰卡仍然保留着英国殖民时期的官方规定，即男性间性行为是违法的。

An Indonesian province has adopted a law against gay sex based on Islamic precepts.

基于伊斯兰教义，印尼的一个省通过了一项禁止同性性行为的法律。

Some governments claim such laws do not matter because they are not enforced.

一些国家认为不用在意这些法律，因为它们没有法律效力。

But activists say they create feelings of insecurity in the gay community and give officials an easy means to blackmail people.

但活动人士表示，这些法律在同性恋群体中制造了不安，也给官员对他们进行敲诈提供了依据。

They also serve as an implicit obstacle to more ambitious reforms.

并且对于接下来更雄心勃勃的改革来说，这些法律都是隐形的阻碍。

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Some of the region’s more liberal countries have seen a backlash against recent advances.

尽管近期取得了进步，但东南亚的一些政策相对自由的国家出现了负面的声音。

Religious groups in Thailand have recently begun to object to the law on civil unions.

泰国的宗教团体最近开始反对有关同性婚姻的法律。

They often attack rights for queer people as “white supremacy”, or as incompatible with traditional Asian values, says Ms Chayajit.

查亚吉特女士说，这些人常抨击男同性恋群体，说他们是“白人至上”，还说他们与亚洲传统价值观不符。

In the Philippines, Reverend Agbayani chuckles at such arguments. “Love is an Asian value,” he says.

菲律宾的阿巴亚尼牧师对此嗤之以鼻，称“爱才是亚洲的价值观。”

More and more people across the region agree with him.

在东南亚，越来越多的人同意他的观点。

（恭喜读完，本篇英语词汇量约743左右）

原文出自：2022年6月18日《The Economist》Asia版块。

精读笔记来源于：自由英语之路

本文翻译整理: Fei Min

本文编辑校对: Irene
仅供个人英语学习交流使用。

【补充资料】（来自于网络）

白人至上是一种种族份子的形态意识，其主张白人(专指淡肤色)族裔优越于其他族裔。理念是白人至上，余皆劣种。

2017年8月12日，美国弗吉尼亚州夏洛茨维尔发生“白人至上”骚乱。2018年8月11日，时任美国总统的特朗普在社交媒体平台推特上表示，他谴责所有形式的种族主义，呼吁国家团结。

【重点句子】（3个）

The grooms declared their vows through tears.

新郎们含泪宣誓。

They carry no legal weight, but they are often officiated by religious or local leaders.

虽不被法律承认，却常有宗教人士或当地大人物为其主持。

Not all countries in the region are similarly accommodating.

并非东南亚所有的国家都对此这么包容。

自由英语之路