Being gay in kazakhstan

Many don’t even consider dating or using LGBTQ+ apps because it’s simply too dangerous.”

A particularly painful issue within Kazakhstan’s LGBTQ+ community is internalized homophobia – self-directed negativity toward one’s own identity or others in the community.

“I’ve always been surprised by how some gay people openly dislike other gay people.

But in doing so, they reinforce harmful stereotypes and make things worse for everyone.”

The situation is especially difficult in Kazakhstan’s southern cities, where traditional values often take precedence over personal freedoms.

“Even though Almaty is in the south, I think it’s much harder to be gay in places like Shymkent, Taraz, or Turkistan.

This article criminalized male homosexuality, punishable by imprisonment of between 3 to 5 years. People here usually don’t mind what you wear or whether you have piercings, for example. LGBTIQ organizations and activists face many challenges, including arbitrary arrest. Discrimination in the workplace, homophobic attacks, and the inability to legally register same-sex relationships remain daily realities.

For many, emigration seems like the only way to live openly.

Unlike neighboring Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, where same-sex relationships are criminalized, Kazakhstan has no such legal prohibitions.

“At least we don’t have a law banning LGBTQ+ existence like in Uzbekistan,” Arsen notes. They hid every hint of their orientation. Non-consensual medical interventions on intersex children remain legal.

There is widespread and institutionalized prejudice against LGBTIQ people in the country.

In major cities, particularly Almaty, the situation is relatively tolerant, but in the regions, LGBTQ+ people still face significant discrimination and fear.

The Times of Central Asia spoke with Arsen, a resident of Almaty (who requested anonymity due to safety concerns), about the realities of being gay in Kazakhstan, the challenges he faces, and why, despite the difficulties, he chooses to stay there.

Arsen lives and works in Almaty, widely regarded as Kazakhstan’s most open-minded city.