On every second Saturday of June, the streets of Kathmandu burst with colours and an evident sense of joy as the city celebrates Pride Month with its annual parade. Youths from all groups gather at Ratnapark and march towards NarayanChaur, Naxal, to observe an event that has grown in significance and size over the years.
This year marked the 7th annual Nepal Pride Parade, commemorating the day as the celebration for LGBTQIA+ Nepalis. The nation has made quite a stride when it comes to ensuring rights for the community in comparison to its neighbours.
Only a few weeks ago, a team of health professionals carried out its first-ever gender-affirming surgery. And for about a decade now, Nepal has joined a handful of countries around the world, such as South Africa (1996) and Ecuador (1998), that provide protections for LGBTQIA+ people in their national constitutions.
Alongside legal progress, the nation has become more well-known as a queer-friendly vacation spot. The country also ranked 44th out of 203 in the LGBTQ Travel Safety Index 2023.
Last year, the Nepal Tourism Board collaborated with the Nepal Mountaineering Association to organise the first-ever trekking guide programme for local queer individuals. The first cohort of 25 trekking guides will soon be available to help queer travellers.
Additionally, private sector efforts have also emerged to support inclusive tourism. There are companies like Pink Mountain Travels and Excursion, a Nepal-based LGBTQIA+ travel agency founded in 2011, that offer safe and inclusive travel experiences. They provide a wide range of packages that cater to diverse interests and preferences, including trekking, cultural sites, and wildlife excursions. Their commitment to creating a welcoming environment for all travellers, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, sets them apart.
Beyond present-day visibility, Nepal’s cultural and religious traditions have long encompassed a touch of queerness.These travel offerings are complemented by a growing number of queer-friendly spaces in the valley. For example, Pink Tiffany, a bar/restaurant in Thamel, is a popular spot where folks from the community meet and hang out. Other queer spaces include Pride Perks Cafe, De Lamar Cafe, Kaalo 101 – an art space, Aaja Cafe, Nana ko Chaana – a rooftop restaurant, etc.
Beyond present-day visibility, Nepal’s cultural and religious traditions have long encompassed a touch of queerness. Both Hinduism and Buddhism feature gender-fluid or non-heteronormative deities. For instance, the Hindu deity Ardhanarishvara is a blend of masculine and feminine elements, symbolising the union of their energies. Similarly, the Buddhist bodhisattva Avalokitesvara Guanyin is often perceived as a character with a fluid gender identity.
In more recent history, a series of achievements started with a resounding 2007 Supreme Court decision in which the bench ordered the government to legally recognise a third gender category, audit all laws to identify those that discriminated against LGBT people, and form a committee to study the legal recognition of same-sex relationships.
By 2010, the Election Commission had added the third option to voter rolls, and immigration forms swiftly followed suit. Then, in 2011, Nepal was the world’s first country to include a third gender on its federal census.
And in 2015, the government started issuing passports that recognised the “other” gender category. That same year, Nepal became the world’s 10th country to specifically protect LGBTQIA+ people in its constitution.
Similarly, the government has started collecting data on its LGBTQIA+ population from the last census of 2021. According to the census, a total of 2,928 identify themselves as “other”. Moreover, on June 28, 2023, the Supreme Court issued an interim order for the temporary registration of same-sex marriage.
While these are some notable achievements, there is still a long way to go. How much of the seemingly queer friendliness of the nation from the outside translates to the ground reality?
Perhaps the nation cannot be hailed as queer‑friendly when its foundational systems still force entire communities into a single box labelled “other”. This ‘one size fits all’ category still lumps sex, gender, and sexuality into one outdated label, failing to properly represent trans, non-binary, and gender-diverse folks.
On June 28, 2023, the Supreme Court issued an interim order for the temporary registration of same-sex marriage. Furthermore, changes in the law do not always mirror societal views. Nepali society is extremely rooted in Brahminical patriarchal heteronormativity. This means that anything outside the norm and status quo is frowned upon and socially unacceptable. While things are changing, it is crucial to understand that there is a need for more grassroots-level awareness and education.
It goes without saying that the nation has the potential to be a place worth more than just a haven for LGBTQIA+ travellers. It can make South Asia a leader in queer inclusion, a region where people are not just safe but stronger.
But, to get there, the laws will need to change, the systems will need to hear, and the society will have to learn to accept difference, not as an anomaly but rather as a beautiful part of human existence.
Pratikshya Bhatta is a junior editor with Nepal Connect.
