Senior Minister His Excellency Ieng Mouly Presides Over Consultative Meeting on Policies and Laws in Response to Study Results of Impediments to LGBTIQ People’s Access to Health, HIV/AIDS Services and Social Protection
H.E. Senior Minister His Excellency Ieng Mouly, Chair of the National AIDS Authority, presided over a consultative meeting, on policies and laws in response to study results of impediments to health, HIV/AIDS and social protection service by group of citizen namely lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and questioning (LGBTIQ), held at Phnom Penh Himawari Hotel on the morning of August 23, 2019.
In attendance at the meeting were some 60 participants, consisting of the National AIDS Authority’s leading managers; representatives of ministries, institutions, UNAIDS, civil society organizations, and gay and lesbian people’s communities (KHANA, Youth Voices Count, MHC, CAM-ASEAN Youth's Future, MHSS, Media One, Micro Rainbow International Foundation)
The meeting was co-organized by KHANA, UNAIDS, and organizations working with men who have sex with men, Transgender and Lesbian people to disseminate the finding results of the study and assessment of impediments to the access to AIDS medical services and related social protection as well as legal aspects and policies towards men who have sex with men, transgender and lesbian people. It was also to seek further understanding of the priority goal setting process and relevant ministries and institutions’ joint solutions to the need of gay and lesbian people and timely comprehensive response.
Addressing the attendees at the consultative meeting on dissemination of the results of the study and assessment of the impediments to the access to medical AIDS services and social protection, focusing on the legal aspects and policies in Cambodia, co-organized by KHANA, UNAIDS, and organizations working with LGBTIQ people, His Excellency the Senior Minister commented on the key points summarized as follows:
1) For the first time, as stated by Notification No. 213 SCN.SS, the Royal Government has recognized the civil society organizations’ merits for the contributions to the fight against AIDS;
2) Civil society does not discriminate against gay and lesbian people by, for instance, holding ceremonies at villages to let them live together.
3) The National AIDS Authority does not ban same-sex love. However, it calls on them to join in preventing the spread of AIDS by using condoms;
4) It is asked to report the National AIDS Authority should there be discrimination against gay and lesbian job-seekers, and
5) Cambodia has laws that we cannot amend. We are still unable to act like the West, which allow same-sex marriage. In marriage law, we mention only wedding between men and women. Nonetheless, the National AIDS Authority may assist in the debate and study of the process to formulate cohabitation contract according to civil law.
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