Women demonstrate against the situation in Iran during the 2010 Christopher Street Day gay pride parade in Berlin. This also creates an atmosphere for blackmail. The laws can lead to distrust between partners, as if caught, the only defence for the passive partner is rape. The passive person faces the death penalty, but the active person only faces the same punishment if married. This is because Iran’s complex laws around homosexuality mean that men face different punishments for consensual sexual intercourse, depending whether they are the “active” or the “passive” participant.
The threat of blackmail is now a huge problem for gay men, explains Saghi Ghahraman, founder of the Iranian Queer Organization. In the summer of 2016 a 19-year-old boy was hanged in Iran’s Markazi province: in 2014 two men were executed. Although it is less common now, it still occurs. Amnesty International estimates that 5,000 gays and lesbians have been executed there since the 1979 Iranian revolution. Iran’s leaders describe homosexuality as “moral bankruptcy” or “modern western barbarism”. “The officials used to say they could never meet with us but now they can’t say they’re busy because protecting our rights are part of their job,” he jokes. A rare opportunity for Iraqi activists has come up with Iraq being appointed to the UN human rights council.
“What’s great is that we’re able to provide resources for LGBT Iraqis that were not there for ourselves.” Ashour says his NGO’s network has grown really fast with the organisation’s website getting 11,000 hits a month, most from inside Iraq. It’s clear LGBT Iraqis are still looking for ways to connect though. “We have no spaces left online or offline,” Ashour adds sadly. Suspected community spaces have been burned down or bombed, and it hasn’t been safe to meet up with people for at least six years – especially as people have been targeted via dating apps.