Oman

Oman’s hereditary monarchy restricts most political rights and civil liberties and imposes criminal penalties for criticism and dissent. Oman’s legal system has a historical basis in British colonial-era laws and a religious basis in Sharia Law. Both the historical context and the existence of Sharia law criminalize same-sex relations and create a particularly restrictive environment for the rights of LGBTIQ people. In 2018, a new Penal Code was enacted that criminalizes gender nonconformity and institutes harsher penalties for consensual same-sex relations, public acts of indecency and the publication of or transmission of words, images, or programs contrary to the public order of morals. Social norms stigmatize both LGBTIQ people and their families. Outright has not identified any LGBTIQ organizations, even informal ones, in Oman.