Lebanon: the LGBTQI population, forgotten prisoners

Bertho Makso. The prison conditions experienced by members of the LGBTQI community are directly linked to the discrimination that they face. This discrimination is omnipresent throughout all their interactions with the prison service, from their arrest to after their release. The morality police target the LGBTQI community, as well as prostitution- and drug-related infractions. As soon as an LGBTQI person is arrested, they are shamed and insulted. In some cases, they are held in police custody for several months, even though the maximum legal limit is 48 hours, with the possibility to renew this once.

Unless they can pay a bribe or have the support of an influential member of Lebanese society, LGBTQI individuals are soon forgotten within the prison system.

They are often tortured or subjected to physical and/or psychological abuse. They have to take mandatory drug and HIV tests. Anyone testing positive for HIV is sent to the “blue building”, a psychiatric prison hospital with a special cell for LGBTQI prisoners. These prisoners are therefore in daily contact with people suffering from major psychological problems.

Prisoners who test negative for HIV are placed in a prison based on their physical appearance. For example, if a transgender woman still has male genitalia, she will be sent to a men’s prison, where the prison staff will cut her hair and she will be subject to constant abuse. Conversely, a transgender woman with female genitalia will be sent to a women’s prison, where she will face rejection from her fellow prisoners and violence if her gender identity becomes known.

Some prison governors reportedly refuse to accept LGBTQI individuals in their prisons, claiming “My prison is clean”. During one of my prison visits, a warden told me he had refused to accept a gay person in his prison. This person was then rejected by three other prisons, before ending up in the central prison in Roumieh.

LGBTQI prisoners also experience sexual violence. They are forced to provide sexual services to their fellow prisoners. The victims, who are referred to as “rabbits”, often do not have enough money to buy food.

BM. We don’t present ourselves as an LGBTQI organisation during our visits. We talk to all the prisoners, not just members of the community, to avoid stigmatising them. The goal is to not draw attention to them or create more problems for them. We offer our services to anyone who needs them. Our approach is inclusive, to change people’s mindsets and the system. When ProudLebanon offers its services to all prisoners without taking sides, we can change a person’s idea of the LGBTQI community. Our services are based on psychological and psychosocial support. We offer legal assistance when we can, or we refer people to other associations.

Because of the COVID-19 crisis, we’re no longer allowed to enter Lebanese prisons, as is the case for the majority of NGOs who could previously visit the prisons. An exception is made for some religious organisations in order to pray, among other reasons. We really fear the worst. No information has been shared since the start of the pandemic. Nobody knows if the prisoners need psychological support or anything else.

BM. The authorities have not implemented any protection mechanisms for LGBTQI prisoners, apart from the services offered by civil society organisations.

However, the national HIV programme is also run in prison. It aims to follow up with everyone who has tested positive, including prisoners, in collaboration with the prison authorities. The building housing the programme was destroyed in the explosion in Beirut in August 2020. ProudLebanon stepped in to make sure all prisoners were still taking their medication.

We have also created information leaflets for the LGBTQI community. One of them is specifically about prison, focusing on their rights and how to protect themselves when being questioned.

Discrimination and violence towards the LGBTQI community are the result of discriminatory laws, a patriarchal society and a lack of training for the people in charge of prisons and police stations. One of our recommendations is to better educate the people involved, including police officers, judges and investigators. The police really need this kind of training, not only for the LGBTQI community, but also for all the other prisoners with specific needs.