INDONESIA

LGBT Candidates to Run in Nepal

"The Nepalese will go to the polls for the Constituent Assembly Election. 62 people from the LGBT community have filed their candidacy."

Candidates from the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community announce their candidacy for the November election in Nepal.

All 62 of them are part of the Blue Diamond Society, an NGO that fights for the rights of LGBT people.

One of them is transgender, Bhumika Shrestha. 

“Many political parties still don’t believe we are capable. In former Constituent Assembly elections, political parties accommodated our issues in their manifestos but they didn't apply them in practice. That’s why we’re filing our candidacy.”

The candidates come from across the country and some have joined political parties, like Bhumika. She’s now a member of the Nepali Congress, the country’s second largest party.

“In the previous Assembly there was only one member from our community. But there is a large number of us and so we weren’t adequately represented. Now we are asking for a fair representation in Parliament. We believe that this time all political parties will provide us a candidacy.”

They’re now pushing political parties to give them a ticket to contest the elections.

Sunil Babu Pant is Nepal’s only openly gay lawmaker, the only gay member of the former Constituent Assembly.

“In the last election, none of the bigger party were ready and the country also was not ready to support us. And a small party, needed any vote bank, genuinely support us. But during the last five years time we managed to convince the larger political parties. To make our issues national and to be heard, bigger parties are much more effective.”

But if they fail to get the support of the main parties, they could still contest as independent candidates.

The country’s third largest party, the Communist Party of Nepal, recently held a ceremony to welcome LGBT candidates.

Though it’s not clear yet how many gay candidates will run for election with the party’s backing, but party President Jhalanath Khanal says they’re opening their doors to the LGBT community.

“Now it is our responsibility to establish your rights. And we should think about the welfare of your community. When the Constituent Assembly forms in the near future, we'll fight together for your rights. Believe in us, you'll get appropriate responsibility in accordance with your capacity.”

The Nepalese government legalised homosexuality in 2007.

And the Supreme Court has ordered the government to scrap all laws that discriminate against people based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Four years later, Nepal’s census recognised a third gender in addition to male and female.

But despite the positive changes, Nepal is still a conservative country and discrimination remains a problem.

Here at the Teej festival, LGBT people gather to celebrate women’s rights.  They’re here at the office of the Blue Diamond Society... half of them dressed in red.

They’re dancing to an LGBT anthem in Nepal... the lyrics are about their demand for equal rights.

35-year-old choreographer Umesh Pandey says he’s ready to fight for a seat in the election.

“If I win, I will work differently. We don’t have any children, so we can focus on our work. We can work fairly and freely. If I got the chance, I’d only work for our nation.”

• Nepal
• election
• LGBT candidates
• Blue Diamond Society
• Sunil Babu Pant