Kuwait

The rights of sexual and gender minorities in Kuwait are highly restricted. Consensual same-sex sexual activity between men is criminalized under Article 193 of the penal code with penalties of up to seven years of imprisonment. Although same-sex relationships between women are not explicitly mentioned in criminal law, they are effectively prohibited, given that sexual relations are legally permitted only within marriage.

LGBTIQ people face persistent discrimination and regular enforcement of existing laws. Transgender people have historically faced severe legal risks, particularly under Article 198, which criminalized “imitation of the opposite sex.” Although this statute was struck down as unconstitutional in 2022, transgender and gender-diverse individuals remain vulnerable to discrimination and abuse, particularly by police. Broader public morality provisions are regularly used to restrict freedom of expression and association, while government officials have publicly denigrated LGBTIQ communities.

Kuwait enforces broad censorship of LGBTIQ content under its Press and Publications Law (Law No. 3 of 2006), which bars the publication or screening of material deemed offensive to “public morals.” These provisions were extended to cover online media under the Law Regulating Electronic Media (Law No. 8 of 2016), giving authorities wide latitude to block or ban content they consider contrary to social values. In August 2023, a government censorship committee barred screenings of the Barbie and Wicked films in cinemas, claiming that they contained ideas “alien to Kuwaiti society” and depicted queer characters. In 2022, Kuwait’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs went as far as to summon the U.S. Embassy Chargé d`affaires to protest social media posts expressing support for the human rights of sexual and gender minorities. The government stated that such content violated Kuwait’s laws and social values, illustrating official opposition to public expressions of LGBTIQ inclusion. Overall, Kuwait remains one of the most restrictive environments for people of queer experience in the Middle East, with criminalization, censorship, and a lack of legal protections significantly limiting rights and safety.