SECP -Abdul Rehman Qureshi [Sailor to sink Titanic]

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 SECP officials question impartiality of inquiry committee

Officials in the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) have expressed concerns over impartiality and fairness of an inquiry committee constituted by the prime minister to look into allegations of corruption against the top official of the commission.

Officials in the SECP and stakeholders have expressed concerns regarding impartiality of the inquiry committee as even before initiation of the inquiry proceedings, the inquiry committee had expressed full confidence in Salman Sheikh, Chairman, SECP, who is facing corruption charges.According to the minutes of the SECP Policy Board meeting held last month and made available to The News, the members, who also include the members of the inquiry committee, expressed concern over the ongoing situation, which had arisen out in the commission.It was pointed out that various kinds of communications were frequently being received by them from Commissioner Legal Tariq Husain, wherein he raised issues directly to the higher authorities and the members of the Policy Board.The Policy Board members, including those who are the members of the inquiry committee constituted expressed their full confidence in the chairman.Some SECP officials said that impartiality of the committee and transparency had become questionable as even before the initiation of the proceedings it had morally acquitted the SECP chairman.The inquiry committee consists of Ismail Qureshi, Secretary, Establishment; Nuzrat Bashir, Additional Secretary, Finance; and Munawwar Hamid, Member Policy Board. Additionally, the committee has been allowed to co-opt another member from the Law and Justice Division.The commissioner legal had expressed his reservations on the constitution of the committee, the minutes of the meeting said. He had raised lack of confidence in the chairman of the inquiry committee, who is said to be a relative of Abdul Rahman Qureshi, Secretary, SECP. In his letter dated February 17, 2010, the commissioner legal had alleged that Salman Sheikh was assisted by some senior officers of the commission, especially Qureshi in his acts of misfeasance.The commissioner legal also expressed no confidence in Munawwar Hamid, who is said to be a personal friend of the SECP chairman.The board meeting expressed full confidence in the SECP chairman and, in fact, expressed their concerns at the fact that the law commissioner is writing directly to the board and higher authorities, according to the minutes of the meeting.The majority of the Policy Board members whose fairness has become questionable agreed to take away the security of the tenure available to the commissioners and give unlimited number of terms to the SECP chairman. The question that arises is, if these persons have already expressed their full confidence in the chairman before even start of the inquiry proceedings, what is the object of inquiring into the allegations. The outcome of the inquiry seems to be predetermined and the proceedings are designed to be a whitewash. In fact, it appears that instead of the chairman, it is the commissioner who may be made an example for blowing the whistle, a senior official in the Finance Ministry said on the condition of anonymity.The ministry officials and the SECP stakeholders were of the view that the prime minister either order a judicial inquiry not only to look into the allegations against the chairman, but also to inquire into this attempt to cover up the frauds brought to light by the commissioner legal, or the Supreme Court should take suo motu notice of this issue.

Courtesy : The News...

NAVEED INAM CHEEMA Vs SECURITIES & EXCHANGE COMMISSION OF PAKISTAN

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Review Petition under Article 188 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973 read with Order XXVI Rule 1 of the Pakistan Supreme Court Rules, 1980 for Review of the Judgement dated 28.04.2008 passed by this August Court in Civil Appeal No.306/2009:

1. The Petitioner was serving as Deputy Registrar of Companies in the Corporate Law Authority. The Petitioner was appointed through the Federal Public Service Commission and in the FPSC Examination the Petitioner had topped the list. The Petitioner was the senior mist Deputy Registrar.
2. That under Section 43 of the Securities and Exchange Commission Act, 1997 (the Act), the Corporate Law Authority was dissolved. Section 43(e) of the Act provided that no employee of the Authority shall have any right of lien to appointment to any post in the Commission and Section 43(f) provided that any person referred to clause (e) who is appointed in the Commission shall have the option either to remain a civil servant or to be an employee of the Commission and clause (h) of this Section provided that a person referred to in clause (e) who is not appointed by the Commission shall continue to draw his pay, allowances, privileges or other benefits as he was drawing while holding the post in Authority and unless sooner he is appointed by the Federal Government to another post, the cost of paying salary, allowances and other benefits to such person shall be borne by the Commission.
3. That the Commission selected the persons of its choice through a pick and choose policy and appointed them as the employees  of the Commission, whereas the Petitioner was not appointed. The service of the Petitioner was declared surplus vide order dated 01.05.2000 and also a corrigendum was issued on 11.05.2000. The Petitioner challenged the letters whereby he was declared surplus through Writ Petition No.17807/2000, which was allowed vide judgement dated 23.01.2001 and the above mentioned letters were declared to have been issued without lawful authority.
4. That the Commission challenged the judgement dated 23.01.2001 in the Supreme Court through CPLA No.448/2001. this Petition was dismissed vide order dated 27.04.2001 passed by the Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan. It was held in this judgement that when the impugned letter were issued the Commission was not properly constituted and therefore, the letters dated 01.05.2000 and 11.05.20001 were coram non judice. It was also held that the Petitioner continued to serve the Commission in various capacities and during his service he was nominated for higher education and training and as such an impression was given to him that he has been taken over in employment of the Commission. After serving the Commission for about one and half year, the impugned letters was issued, hence the Petition was dismissed and the leave was refused.
5. That after the judgement of the Honourable Supreme Court dated 27.04.2001, the Commission issued a letter to the Petitioner on 11.07.2001 stating reasons as to why the Commission was not satisfied to offer the Petitioner appointment as its employee and the Petitioner was asked to submit reply to the said letter and was promised a personal hearing. However, the Petitioner did not appeared before the Committee constituted for deciding about his employment and therefore, vide order dated 01.08.2001, the Petitioner was informed that he cannot be taken into the employment of the Commission. The Petitioner alongwith Muhammad Ashraf Gondal, challenged this order through Writ Petition No.20166/2001 in the Lahore High Court, Lahore and vide judgement dated 09.04.2002 this Writ Petition was dismissed to the extent of the Petitioner but was accepted with respect to Muhammad Ashraf Gondal. The Commission being aggrieved of the judgement in favour of Muhammad Ashraf Gondal filed an ICA in the Lahore High Court. Both the ICAs were heard together and vide judgment dated 13.05.2003, through the consent of all the parties the ICAs were decided and it was directed that the Committee constituted by the Commission shall reconsider the cases of the Petitioner and Muhammad Ashraf Gondal after they filed replies to the reasons given by the Commission.
6. That in compliance with the order of the High Court in the ICA, the Commission gave a personal hearing to the Petitioner and vide order dated 22.07.2003 held that the Petitioner is not suitable for employment in the Commission and that he will remain available in the surplus pool.
7. That agains the order of the Commission dated 22.07.2003, the Petitioner along with Muhammad Ashraf Gondal filed Writ Petition No.2927 of 2003 in Lahore High Court,Rawalpindi Bench, Rawalpindi. this Writ Petition was accepted vide judgement dated 22.12.2003 and it was held that the impugned order has been passed in violation and by ignoring the vital observations of the Honouable Supreme Court of Pakistan in its judgement dated 27.04.2001and the Writ Petition is allowed and the impugned order is set aside being without lawful authority.
8. The aggrieved of the judgment dated27.12.2003, the Commission filed ICA No.11 of 2004 in the Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, from where it was transferred to the Islamabad High Court, which High Court in the meantime had been established.
9. That the ICA No.11 of 2004 came up for hearing in the Islamabad High Court on 22.12.2008, which was dismissed vide judgment dated 22.12.2008.
10. That against the judgment dated 22.12.2008 the Commission filed Petition for leave to appeal and leave was granted and the petition was converted into Civil Appeal No.306 of 2009. Similarly another appeal on the same subject Appeal No.305 of 2009 was clubbed with Appeal No.306 of 2009 and both the appeals were accepted vide consolidated judgment 28.04.2010 passed by this August Court.
11. That the Petitioner seeks review of the judgment dated 28.04.2010, inter alia on the grounds.

Grounds:

• That it may graciously be appreciated that an error has occurred in the impugned judgment by holding that the Writ Petition file by the Petitioner was not maintainable in view of Article 212(3) of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, because the Petitioner is a civil servant. It is respectfully submitted that the case of the Petitioner for retention in the service of the Commission did not relate to his terms and conditions of service as a civil servant and therefore, the Petitioner could not have approached the Federal Service Tribunal for the redress of his grievance. In fact it was held in the judgment dated 09.04.2002 passed by his Lordship of Moulvi Anwar ul Haq in Writ Petition No.20166/2001 that bar of Article 212(3) of the Constitution, the matter does not pertain to any of the terms and conditions of service stated in the Servant Act, 1973 read with provision of Service Tribunal Act, 1973. The Petitioner could not have approached the Service Tribunal for redress of his grievance, also for the reason that the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan does not fall within the jurisdiction of Federal Service Tribunal.
• That in the impugned judgment it has also been observed by this August Court that the learned Division Bench of Islamabad High Court, while passing the impugned order for dismissal of ICAs has rightly observed that even the Writ Petitions file the Respondent No.1 before the Lahore High Court were not maintainable in terms of Section 34 of the Act, which observation is correct and thus without exception. It is most humbly submitted that this observation of the learned High Court relates to what is known as "alternate remedy". It has been held by all the superior courts that High Court will not entertain a constitutional jurisdiction of High Court but is a rule by which court regulates its jurisdiction. The existence of the remedy under Section 34 of the Act was definitely not adequate and prompt and therefore, it was not a bar to filing of the Writ Petition under Article 199 of the Constitution. Hence an error has occurred in the impugned judgment which needs to be reviewed. it may also kindly be appreciated that the matter went up before the Honourable Lahore High Court and the question was never raised that the Writ Petitions are not maintainable. Also the matter went up to this August Court in a Petition for leave to appeal and the objection was never raised that the Writ Petition is not maintainable. Similarly, the case went up to the Lahore High Court in Intra Court Appeals, which were decided with consent of the parties, but the question was never raised that the Writ by the Petitioner was not maintainable. Hence, at this very late stage if it is held that the Writ was not maintainable, the Petitioner would be left without any remedy even though in the impugned judgment this August Court has held that it is open to the Petitioner to follow any other remedy.
• It is therefore respectfully prayed that this August Court may be pleased to accept this Review Petition and the judgment dated 28.04.2010 by this August Court in Civil Appeal No.306/2009 may graciously be Reviews and set aside and the judgment dated 22.12.2003 passed by the Lahore High Court may be restored.
• Any other relief deemed fit and proper in the circumstances of this case may also be awarded to the Petitioner.

The above said extracts of petition filed by Mr. Naveed Inam Cheema and Muhammad Ashfraf Gonda. The below is extract from the judgment made by Honourable Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali in Civil Appeal No.305 & 306 of 2009 dated 28.04.2010 and it can be easily seen that Abdul Rehman Qureshi plays its malafied role:

5. Impugned order dated 30th July, 2001 was passed by four Commissioners namely, Tariq Iqbal Khan, Abdul Rehman Qureshi, N.M Shahani, M. Zafar-ul-Haq Hijazi and not by commission, as contended by the learned counsel for the appellant.

Abdul Rehman Qureshi foxfully used section 43 for himself to be remain in SECP as well as the same section as axe had been used to fire his opponents.

Since, it has been established fact that the said Abdul Rehman Qureshi is a relative of former Establishment Eecretary Ismail Qureshi, Abdul Rehman Qureshi has always been grabbed powers of his choices. The journey of Abdul Rehman Qureshi starts from Assistant Registrar of Companies to Acting Chairman of erstwhile CLA, Sectary of Policy Board of SECP and Legal Advisor to SECP (whereas he is not a professional lawyer as required by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, Act, 1997).

It has been established fact that apart of his kinship with Ex-Secretary Establishment, Government of Pakistan, he has also been working as a watchdog to the interests of federal and provincial bureaucracy who, covertly, are running their business through private limited companies. It is believed that Abdul Rehman Qureshi has strong networking neighborhood to protect himself by using black mailing tactics.

Pakistan's first gay pride celebration sparks online debate - Hindustan Times

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Pakistan's first gay pride celebration sparks online debate - Hindustan Times

The statistics of legislation worldwide

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LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Algeria	Illegal (Penalty: Fine - up to 2 years prison)[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Egypt	Not specifically outlawed, other laws may apply[11]						Unknown
Libya	Illegal (Penalty: up to 5 years prison).[11]				Unknown
Morocco (incl. Western Sahara)	Illegal (Penalty: up to 3 years)				Unknown		Unknown
Sudan	Illegal (Penalty: 5 years up to death penalty.)
Tunisia	Illegal (Penalty: Fine - 3 years)				Unknown		Unknown

Western Africa

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Benin	Legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Burkina Faso	Legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Cape Verde	Legal since 2004[11] + UN decl. sign.				Unknown		Unknown
Côte d'Ivoire	Legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Gambia	Illegal (Penalty: up to 14 years[12])				Unknown		Unknown
Ghana	Male illegal Female legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Guinea	Illegal (Penalty: 6 months to 3 years prison)[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Guinea-Bissau	Legal[11] + UN decl. sign.				Unknown		Unknown
Liberia	Illegal (Penalty: Fine)				Unknown		Unknown
Mali	Legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Mauritania	Illegal (Penalty: Death penalty)				Unknown		Unknown
Niger	Legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Nigeria	Male illegal Female illegal in areas under Sharia Female legal in areas not under Sharia.				Unknown		Unknown
Senegal	Illegal (Penalty: 1 month to 5 years prison)				Unknown		Unknown
Sierra Leone	Male illegal Female legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Togo	Illegal				Unknown		Unknown

Middle Africa

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Angola	Not specifically outlawed, other laws may apply (Penalty: Labour camps for habitual offenders).[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Ascension Island	Legal[11]	Unknown			Yes (as part of the Military of the United Kingdom)	Unknown	Unknown
Cameroon	Illegal (Penalty: Fine to 5 years prison)				Unknown		Unknown
Central African Republic	Legal[11] + UN decl. sign.				Unknown		Unknown
Chad	Legal since 1967				Unknown		Unknown
Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire)	Legal[11]		Constitutional ban since 2005		Unknown		Unknown
Equatorial Guinea	Legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Gabon	Legal[11] + UN decl. sign.				Unknown		Unknown
Republic of the Congo	Legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Saint Helena	Legal[11]	Unknown			Yes (as part of the Military of the United Kingdom)	Unknown	Unknown
São Tomé and Príncipe	Illegal[11] + UN decl. sign. (proposed to be legalised by 1 July 2011 under a new Criminal Code)[1]				Unknown		Unknown

Eastern Africa

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Burundi	Illegal since 2009[13]		Constitutional ban since 2005		Unknown		Unknown
Comoros	Illegal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Djibouti	Unclear[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Eritrea	Illegal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Ethiopia	Illegal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Kenya	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 14 years) Female currently legal, but the Prime Minister has recently called for the arrest of lesbians as well as gay men[14]		Constitutional ban in Article 45 since 2010[15]		Unknown		Unknown
Madagascar	Legal				Unknown		Unknown
Malawi	Male illegal Female legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Mauritius	Male illegal Female legal (national debate over repeal of the law).[11][16] + UN decl. sign.				Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[17]	Unknown
Mozambique	Legal[18]				Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[17]	Unknown
Réunion (Overseas department of France)	Legal since 1791	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
Rwanda	Legal[11]		Constitutional ban in Article 26 since 2003		Unknown		Unknown
Seychelles	Male illegal Female legal				Unknown		Unknown
Somalia	Illegal[11]					Unknown
Uganda	Illegal		Constitutional ban since 2005
Tanzania	Illegal (Penalty: up to life imprisonment)[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Zambia	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 14 years) Female legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Zimbabwe	Male illegal Female legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown

Southern Africa

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Botswana	Illegal (Penalty: Fine - 7 years)				Unknown		Unknown
Lesotho	Male illegal Female legal[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Namibia	Illegal (not enforced)[11][19]				Unknown		Unknown
South Africa	Legal since 1994	Unregistered partnerships recognized for various specific purposes by laws and judgments since 1994; same-sex marriage legal since 2006	Legal since 2006	Legal since 2002		Bans all anti-gay discrimination, by constitution and statute; specific laws also ban discrimination in employment and housing	Since 2003, legal sex can be changed after surgical or medical treatment; "sex" and "gender" are distinct protected classes
Swaziland	Male illegal Female legal. Pending law includes outlawing lesbian sex conduct.[11]				Unknown		Unknown

Partially recognised states

Main article: List of states with limited recognition

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Western Sahara (80% controlled by Morocco)	Illegal (Penalty: up to 3 years prison)
Somaliland	Illegal (Penalty: expulsion from country, prison - up to life, in various regions and districts; death penalty)

The Americas

Main article: LGBT rights in the Americas

Tables: view · talk · edit

Northern America

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination Laws (sexual orientation)	Anti-discrimination Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Bermuda (Overseas territory of the United Kingdom)	Legal since 1994 (Age of consent discrepancy)			Unknown	(due to policy of conscription)
Canada	Legal since 1969 + UN decl. sign.		Legal since 2003, nationwide since 2005	[20][21]	Since 1992[22]	Bans all anti-gay discrimination, including hate speech	Sex changes legally recognised; Explicit anti-discrimination protections only in NWT, implicit elsewhere;[23]
Mexico	Legal since 1872[11] + UN decl. sign.	/ PACS in Coahuila since 2007. All states are obliged to recognize but not to perform same-sex marriages.[24]	/ Legal in Mexico City since 2010.[25] All states are obliged to recognize but not to perform same-sex marriages.[24]	/ Joint adoption legal in Mexico City since 2010.[25] Nationwide, single gay persons may adopt.[26]	/ No explicit ban. However, LGB persons have been reportedly discharged on the grounds of "immorality."[27]	Nationwide since 2003.[28]	/ Transgender persons can change their legal gender and name in Mexico City since 2008.[29]
Saint Pierre et Miquelon (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
United States	Legal nationwide since 2003. + UN decl. sign. See Lawrence v. Texas	/ Varies by state, but not recognized by federal gov't.	/ Varies by state, but not recognized by federal gov't	/ Single gay persons may adopt, laws on couples vary by state	An Act of Congress providing a mechanism to repeal Don't ask, don't tell was signed into law by President Obama on 22 December 2010. As of February 2011, the Pentagon is starting to dismantle DADT.[30]	/ No federal protections. Banned in 20 states. Included in the federal hate crimes law since 2009. See Matthew Shepard Act	/ No federal protections. Banned in 13 states. Included in the federal hate crimes law since 2009. See Matthew Shepard Act

Central America

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination Laws (sexual orientation)	Anti- discrimination Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Belize	Male: Illegal since 2003 (Penalty: 10 year prison sentence) Female: Legal
Costa Rica	Legal since 1971				Doesn't apply. There are no military forces in Costa Rica, nonetheless they may serve in the police	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
El Salvador	Legal				Yes	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Guatemala	Legal				Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Honduras	Legal since 1899[11]		Constitutional ban	Constitutional ban
Nicaragua	Legal since 2008 + UN decl. sign.				Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[11]
Panama	Legal since 2008

Caribbean islands

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination Laws (sexual orientation)	Anti-discrimination Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Anguilla (Overseas territory of the United Kingdom)	Legal since 2000
Antigua and Barbuda	Illegal (Penalty: 15 year prison sentence)
Aruba (Autonomous country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands)	Legal	Only unions made in The Netherlands recognised	Only same-sex marriages made in The Netherlands recognised
Bahamas	Legal since 1991 (Age of consent discrepancy)
Barbados	Illegal (Penalty: life sentence)
British Virgin Islands	Legal since 2000					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Cayman Islands	Legal since 2000			Unknown		Unknown
Cuba	Legal since 1979 + UN decl. sign.	(but proposed)
Dominica	Illegal (Penalty: 10 year prison sentence)
Dominican Republic
Grenada	Male illegal (Penalty: 10 year prison sentence) Female legal
Guadeloupe (Overseas department of France)	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Haiti	Legal since 1986
Jamaica	Illegal (Penalty: 10 years hard labor) Female legal.
Martinique (Overseas department of France)	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Montserrat	Legal since 2000
Puerto Rico (Commonwealth of the United States)	Legal since 2003				/ Legal since 2010 (not fully implemented)	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Male illegal (Penalty: 10 years) Female legal
Saint Lucia	Male illegal (Penalty: fine and/or 10 year prison sentence) Female legal
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Illegal (Penalty: fine and/or 10 year prison sentence)
Trinidad and Tobago	Illegal (Penalty: 25 year prison sentence)
Turks and Caicos Islands	Legal since 2000
United States Virgin Islands (Insular area of the United States)	Legal since 1984				/ Legal since 2010 (not fully implemented)	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well

South America

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination Laws (sexual orientation)	Anti- discrimination Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Argentina	Legal since 1887[11] + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation throughout the country.	Legal since 2010.[31]	Legal since 2010.	Since 2009.[32]	Legal protection on sexual orientation nationwide proposed, still awaiting Senate approval.	Legal protection on gender identity nationwide proposed, still awaiting Senate approval.
Bolivia	Legal + UN decl. sign.	(Proposed)	Constitutional ban	Constitutional ban	Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Bans all discrimination based on gender identity[33]
Brazil	Legal since 1830[11] + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation since 2004 and civil union since 2011	But on June 27, 2011 a Brazilian judge in Sao Paulo converted a civil union into a same-sex marriage, a first in the nation. On June 28, 2011, another stable union between same-sex couples has been converted into a marriage. It is not clear whether the ruling presents a precedent for additional same-sex marriages.[2][3]	Legal since 2010	Gays and lesbians to serve openly in military.[34]	Legal protection on sexual orientation nationwide proposed, still awaiting Senate approval.[35]	The jurisprudence of the Superior Court of Justice has been in favor of Gender-motivated identity change.[36][37]
Chile	Legal since 1999[11] (Age of consent discrepancy) + UN decl. sign.	(pending)			No laws related to the sexual orientation of members of the armed forces.[38]		is possible to change any name( male /female) and is possible to reconize change of sex if have done a surgery first to change sex
Colombia	Legal since 1981 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2007	Civil Code currently sued because of discrimination of homosexual, bisexual, transexual and transgender individuals due to conception of marriage as the union of a woman and a man.	single person, no matter her/his sexual orientation may adopt. First case of step-child adoption, Court ordered.[39]	since 1999. Since 2009: the military special social security system can be used by same sex couples in the army	The Constitution of 1991 penalizes any sort of discrimination based on several characteristics, including gender and sexual orientation.	[40] Since 1993. The name's gender can be changed easily in the National ID Card, to change the sex field a surgery is required.
Ecuador	Legal since 1997 + UN decl. sign.	[41] Civil unions recognized since 2009	Constitutional ban	Constitutional ban		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Bans all discrimination based on gender identity
Falkland Islands (overseas territory of the UK)	Legal	Legal since 2005				Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
French Guiana	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
Guyana	Male illegal (Penalty: life imprisonment) Female legal.				Unknown	Added to constitution in 2004, but withdrawn afterwards by the government.	Unknown
Paraguay	Legal since 1880[11] + UN decl. sign.	Constitutional ban since 1992[42]	Constitutional ban since 1992[42]		Unknown		Unknown
Peru	Legal since 1836-37[11]				since 2009[43]	Bans all anti-gay discrimination. Penalized with 2-4 years in jail.	Possible via Civil Code and Legal Process, but no specific law.
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands	Legal	Legal since 2005				Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
Suriname	Legal since 1869[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Uruguay	Legal since 1934 + UN decl. sign.	Civil unions since 2008.[44]	But proposed.[45]	Since 2009.[46]	Since 2009.[47]	Legal protection since 2004.[48]	Legal protection since 2004.[48] Transgender persons can change their legal gender and name since 2009.[49]
Venezuela	Legal + UN decl. sign.	Civil union bill passed first reading, becomes law if passes second				Bans some anti-gay discrimination[11]	Under consideration (passed first reading)

Asia

Main article: LGBT rights in Asia

Central Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Kazakhstan	Legal since 1998[11]				Unknown
Kyrgyzstan	Legal since 1998[11]				Unknown
Tajikistan	Legal since 1998[11]				Unknown
Turkmenistan	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 2 year prison sentence) Female legal[11]				Unknown
Uzbekistan	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 3 year prison sentence) Female legal[11]				Unknown

Western Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Bahrain	? Unclear[11]
Iraq	Legal since 2003
Israel	Legal since 1963 de facto 1988 de jure[50] + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabition Legal	Cannot be performed in the country, but foreign same-sex marriages are recognised	[51][52]		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Jordan	Legal since 1951				Unknown		Unknown
Kuwait	Illegal (Penalty: fines, men under 21 face prison sentences up to 10 years, men over 21 face prison sentences up to 7 years)
Lebanon	Illegal (Penalty: minimal, unknown). very lax enforcement.[11]
Oman	Illegal (Penalty: fines, prison sentence up to 3 years; however, only enforced when dealing with "public scandal")
Palestinian territories (Gaza)	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 10 year prison sentence) Female legal				Unknown
Palestinian territories (West Bank)	Legal since 1951[11]				Unknown		Unknown
Qatar	Illegal (Penalty: fines, prison sentence up to 5 years)
Saudi Arabia	Illegal (Penalty: death or prison/fines/whipping)
Syria	Illegal (Penalty: prison sentence up to 3 years; law de facto suspended)
United Arab Emirates	Illegal (Penalty: deportation, fines, prison time or death sentence)
Yemen	Illegal (Penalty: flogging or death)

South Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Afghanistan	Illegal
Bangladesh	Illegal
Bhutan	Illegal (Penalty: prison sentence up to 1 year; no cases of penalty actually enforced)
India	Legal since 2009 Delhi High Court ruling	No explicit recognition, but not outlawed explicitly, same-sex unions reported.[53]	No explicit recognition, but not outlawed explicitly, same-sex marriages reported.[53]	Under consideration	[54]	Under consideration	Transgender people allowed to tick O (Other) in passport and voter identification forms
Iran	Illegal (Penalty: Death)						Transsexuality in Iran is legal if accompanied by a sex change operation; however, transsexuals still report societal intolerance.[55]
Maldives	? Criminal code does not criminalize same-sex sexual relations; sharia law may apply, but no applications have been reported				[citation needed]
Nepal	Legal since 2007[11] + UN decl. sign.		Under consideration	Under consideration		Supreme Court ruled discrimination laws apply to homosexuals	"Third gender" cards have been issued since September 2007, legally protected class[56]
Pakistan	Illegal (Penalty: 2 years to life sentence)						'Third gender' officially protected from discrimination by Supreme Court of Pakistan in 2010
Sri Lanka	? Status unclear - British-enacted sodomy law may apply, never implemented				[citation needed]

East Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
People's Republic of China	Legal since 1997				Unknown		Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender
Republic of China	Legal		Pending law allows civil unions or same-sex marriage.		Due to military draft	Bans some anti-gay discrimination (in work and education)	Unknown
Hong Kong	Legal since 1991 (equal age of consent of 16 for both heterosexual and homosexual sex since 2006)				Unknown (China responsible for defence)
Japan	Legal since 1880 (was illegal from 1873-1880;before that there were no laws forbidding sodomy) + UN decl. sign.		Foreign same-sex marriages recognized.[57]		[58]	/ No nationwide protections, but some cities bans some anti-gay discriminations[11]	Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender, but only after sex reassignment surgery and in case that the transsexual has no child under 20 years old
Macau	Legal since 1996				Unknown (China responsible for defence)		Unknown
Mongolia	Legal since 2002				Unknown		Unknown
North Korea	(showing public affection is frowned upon even on heterosexual couples)						Unknown although there are heavily obeyed gender roles for both male and female. See Let's trim our hair in accordance with the socialist lifestyle
South Korea	Legal						Transsexuals allowed to change legal gender

Southeast Asia

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Brunei	Illegal (Penalty: fine or prison sentence up to 10 years)
Burma	Illegal (Penalty: up to life sentence)
Cambodia	Legal		Technically prohibited, though there has been at least one recorded case of a legally registered and recognized same-sex marriage		Unknown		Unknown
East Timor	Legal + UN decl. sign.				Unknown		Unknown
Indonesia	Legal[59] except for Muslims in Aceh Province[60]				Unknown		Unknown
Laos	Legal				Unknown		Unknown
Malaysia	Illegal (Penalty: fines, prison sentence (2-20 years), or whippings)
Philippines	Legal.[61][62] except for Muslims in Marawi City	[62]	[62]	[63]	Since 2009	No national protections, but Quezon City and Albay have anti-discrimination ordinances[64] National bill pending but still not made into law	Unknown
Singapore	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 2 years prison sentence; no plan to repeal 377A and not enforced since 1999) Female legal				Due to conscription, but gays are not allowed to go to command school or serve in sensitive units.
Thailand	Legal since 1956				Since 2005		Unknown
Vietnam	Legal (no laws against homosexuality have ever existed)				Unknown		Unknown

Europe

Main article: LGBT rights in Europe

Membership in the European Union not only requires repeal of anti-homosexuality legislation, the Treaty of Amsterdam also requires anti-discrimination legislation to be enacted by its member states.^[65]

Northern Europe

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression	MSMs allowed to donate blood
Denmark	Legal since 1933 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1989		Only in registered partnerships since 2010		Bans all anti-gay discrimination[11][66]
Estonia	Legal since 1992 + UN decl. sign.			Only married couples can adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination[66]
Faroe Islands (constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark)	Legal since 1933				(Denmark responsible for defence)	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[66]
Finland	Legal since 1971 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2002	(under consideration)[67]	/ Step-child adoption only (full joint adoption under consideration)		Bans some anti-gay discrimination[66]
Greenland (constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark)	Legal since 1933 +UN decl. sign via Denmark.	Legal since 1996		/ Step-child adoption only	(Denmark responsible for defence)	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Iceland	Legal since 1940 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1996	Legal since 2010	Legal since 2006	N/A	Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]	Sex changes are legal and documents can be amended to the recognised gender.
Ireland	Legal since 1993 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2011	Supreme Court decision pending	Single gay persons may adopt. Step Child adoption under consideration.		Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]	Legislation to recognise gender identity pending after High Court ruling in favour.
Isle of Man	Legal since 1991	Legal since 2011			UK responsible for defence	Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Gender Recognition Act 2009[4]
Latvia	Legal since 1992 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban since 2006	Only married couples can adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Lithuania	Legal since 1993 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban since 1992	Only married couples can adopt		Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]
Norway	Legal since 1972 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1993	Legal since 2009	Legal since 2009		Bans all anti-gay discrimination.[66]	Sex changes are legal and documents can be amended to the recognised gender.
Sweden	Legal since 1944 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1995	Legal since 2009	Legal since 2003		Bans all anti-gay discrimination[11]	Sterilization and divorce necessary for legal gender change.
United Kingdom	Legal since 1967 in England and Wales, 1981 in Scotland and 1982 in Northern Ireland + UN decl. sign.	Civil partnership since 2005	(under consideration)	Legal since 2002 in England and Wales, 2009 in Scotland and unclear in Northern Ireland		Bans all anti-gay discrimination[68][11]	Gender Recognition Act 2004

Western Europe

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Belgium	Legal since 1795 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2000	Legal since 2003	Legal since 2006		Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]
France	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans all anti-gay discrimination[11][66]
Guernsey (incl. Alderney, Herm and Sark)	legal since 1983				UK responsible for defence	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[69]	[69]
Jersey	legal since 1990	civil partnership bill now awaiting assent			UK responsible for defence	Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Gender Recognition (Jersey) Law 2010[5]
Luxembourg	Legal since 1795 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2004	(proposed)	Single gay persons may adopt (step-child only proposed)		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Monaco	Legal since 1793				France responsible for defence
Netherlands	Legal since 1811 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1998	Legal since 2001. First country to legalise same-sex marriage.			Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]

Central Europe

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression	MSMs allowed to donate blood
Austria	Legal since 1971 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2010				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Croatia	Legal since 1977 + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation since 2003				Bans all anti-gay discrimination[70][66]	Act on the elimination of discrimination, The Law on volunteering, Electronic media Law (all including both gender identity and gender expression)
Czech Republic	Legal since 1962 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2006.		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Germany	Legal since 1994 (since 1968 in East Germany) + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2001		/ Step-child adoption only (full joint adoption proposed)		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Hungary	Legal since 1962 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2009	Constitutional ban beginning 1 January 2012[71]			Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Liechtenstein	Legal since 1989 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2011			N/A
Poland	Never punished. Legal until 18th century, criminalized in 19th by laws of Russia, Germany and Austria-Hungary, legal again since 1932 + UN decl. sign.	(proposed)	Constitution defines marriage as "a union of a man and a woman"[72]	Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Sex change legal; birth certificate is amended after the reassignment surgery
Slovakia	Legal since 1962 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Slovenia	Legal since 1977 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2006				Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Sex change can be recorded in a central register, and new documents can be issued based on person's new gender identity.[73]
Switzerland	Geneva, Vaud, Valais and Ticino: legal since 1798. Nationwide since 1942 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2007		Single gay persons may adopt.		Bans some anti-gay discrimination

Eastern Europe

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Albania	Legal since 1995 + UN decl. sign.					Bans all anti-gay discrimination[74]	Forbids discrimination based on gender identity.
Armenia	Legal since 2002 + UN decl. sign.				Unknown
Azerbaijan	Legal since 2000				Unknown
Belarus	Legal since 1994		Constitutional ban since 1994.		Banned from military service
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Legal since 1998 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Bulgaria	Legal since 1968 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban since 1991.	Single gay persons may adopt.		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Georgia	Legal since 2000 + UN decl. sign.				Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Macedonia	Legal since 1996 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination[66]
Moldova	Legal since 1995		Constitutional ban since 1994.
Montenegro	Legal since 1977 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban since 2007.			Bans all anti-gay discrimination[75]	Forbids discrimination based on gender identity.
Romania	Legal since 1996 + UN decl. sign.	(proposed)				Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]
Russia (incl. all constituent regions)	Legal since 1993. Previously legal from 1917 to 1930.
Serbia	Legal since 1994 + UN decl. sign.		Constitution defines marriage as "a union of a man and a woman"			Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Act on the elimination of discrimination
Ukraine	Legal since 1991		Constitution defines marriage as "a union of a man and a woman"

Southern Europe

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Andorra	Legal since 1790 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2005		Legal since 2005	N/A	Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]
Cyprus	Legal since 1998 + UN decl. sign.	(proposed)				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Gibraltar (overseas territory of the UK)	Legal since 1993				UK responsible for defence	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Greece	Legal since 1951 (Age of consent discrepancy) + UN decl. sign.	(proposed)		(proposed)[76]		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Italy	Legal since 1890 + UN decl. sign.			Only married couples can adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Sex changes are legal and documents can be amended to the recognised gender.[77]
Malta	Legal since 1973 + UN decl. sign.	(proposed)				Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Sex changes are legal and documents can be amended to the recognised gender
Portugal	Legal since 1983 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2001	Legal since 2010	Single gay persons may adopt		Bans all anti-gay discrimination, according to Constitution[66]	Sex changes are legal and documents can be amended to the recognised gender since 2011
San Marino	Legal since 2001 + UN decl. sign.				Unknown
Spain	Legal since 1979 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1998	Legal since 2005			Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]	La Ley de Identidad de Género (Gender Identity Law), enacted in 2007.
Turkey	Legal since 1858					Committee formed in March 2010 to draft a discrimination clause including sexual orientation.[78]
Vatican City	Legal since 1929				Unknown

Partially recognised states

LGBT rights in:	Same-sex sexual activity	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Kosovo (only partially recognised, claimed by Serbia)	Legal since 1994 (as part of Serbia), 2008 (as partially recognised sovereign territory)					Bans all anti-gay discrimination[66]
Turkish Republic Northern Cyprus (recognised only by the Republic of Turkey)	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 5 years imprisonment) Female legal[11]

Oceania

Main article: LGBT rights in Oceania

Australasia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Australia (including territories of  Christmas Island,  Cocos (Keeling) Islands,  Norfolk Island)	Legal nationwide since 1994. + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation in all states and under federal laws. Civil Union schemes in ACT, Tasmania, Victoria & New South Wales		/ Joint adoption in ACT, New South Wales and Western Australia. Stepchild adoption in Tasmania.	since 1992	Bans all anti-gay discrimination	Covered by all state and territory laws only.
New Zealand	Legal since 1986. + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2005.		Single gay persons may adopt.		Bans all anti-gay discrimination	Covered under the "sex discrimination" provision of the Human Rights Act 1993 since 2006.

Melanesia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
East Timor (terminology "Oceania" varies on border defintions)	Legal since 1975[11] + UN decl. sign				Unknown
Fiji	Legal since 2010[11]				Unknown	1997 constitution that banned all anti-gay discrimination has been repealed.	Unknown
New Caledonia (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal	PACS since 2009			French responsibility	Unknown
Papua New Guinea	Illegal[11]
Solomon Islands	Illegal[11]
Vanuatu	Legal since 2007[11]				Unknown

Micronesia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Guam (unincorporated territory of the United States)	Legal since 1979	(proposed)		Legal since 2002	/ Legal since 2010 (not fully implemented)	Bans all anti-gay discrimination, also US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well
Federated States of Micronesia	Legal[11]				/ Legal since 2010 (not fully implemented)	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well
Kiribati	Male illegal Female legal[11]
Marshall Islands	Legal since 2005[11]				/ Legal since 2010 (not fully implemented)
Nauru	Male illegal Female legal[11] (legalisation proposed)
Northern Mariana Islands	Legal since 1983				/ Legal since 2010 (not fully implemented)	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well
Palau	Male illegal Female legal[11]

Polynesia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
American Samoa (unincorporated territory of the United States)[79]	Legal since 1899				/ Legal since 2010 (not fully implemented)	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well	The US hate crime laws also apply to all US external territories as well
Easter Island (overseas territory of Chile)	Legal since 1998
Cook Islands (part of the realm of New Zealand)	Male illegal Female legal[11]				New Zealand's responsibility
French Polynesia (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal				French responsibility	Unknown
Niue (part of the realm of New Zealand)	Legal since 2007[11]				Has no military forces	Unknown
Pitcairn Islands (overseas territory of the United Kingdom)	Legal since 1967	Civil partnerships since 2005				Bans most anti-gay discrimination
Samoa	(legalisation proposed)				Has no military forces
Tokelau (part of the realm of New Zealand)	Legal 2007[11]				Has no military forces
Tonga	Male illegal Female legal[11]
Tuvalu	Male illegal Female legal[11]				Has no military forces		Unknown
Wallis and Futuna (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal	PACS since 2009			French responsibility	Unknown