CONVERSION THERAPY- AN ILLEGAL ATTEMPT TO “CURE QUEER SEXUALITY”

 

The National Medical Commission (NMC), the apex regulatory body of medical professionals in India, recently stated that conversion therapy will be treated as professional misconduct and has also written to all the State Medical Councils empowering them to take disciplinary action against medical professionals if they undertake conversion therapy, in compliance to the recent order of Madras High Court. When the matter came up on Friday, Anand Venkatesh, J., looked into the Draft Conduct Regulations 2022, and noted that only gender-based discrimination had been included as misconduct and "Conversion Therapy" was conspicuously absent.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

Conversion therapy dates back to at least the 1890s, when German psychiatrist Albert Von Schrenck-Notzing said at a conference that “he had successfully turned a gay man straight through hypnosis”, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

At the time, being in a same-sex relationship was considered a criminal act, and many doctors were looking into ways to reverse homosexuality. Others saw homosexuality as a mental disorder and began using psychiatric interventions in an attempt to "cure" people with gender identities and sexual orientations different from what was seen as the norm. This included the use of lobotomies and aversion therapy, in which doctors tried to make LGBTQ-identifying people disgusted by homosexuality. In 1952, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) listed homosexuality in its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). After much hue and cry and research, the APA reversed the listing in 1973 and removed homosexuality from the DSM.

Many countries practiced conversion therapy and several people across the globe underwent these so-called conversion therapies. One of the most noted names is that of Alan Turing, English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and theoretical biologist, whose code-breaking skills are said to have shortened World War II by two to four years.

ABOUT THE "ULTIMATE THERAPY FOR CURE"

According to GLAAD, an American non-governmental media monitoring organisation, founded as a protest against defamatory coverage of LGBT people, conversion therapy is any attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.

Inspired by landmark judgments like Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018) and NALSA v. Union of India (2014), and through S. Sushama v. Commissioner of Police (2021), Madras High Court prohibited the practice of conversion therapy. Conversion therapy, also called “reparative therapy,” is the process of medically “curing” or changing the sexual orientation of LGBTQIA+ people.

Tamil Nadu is the first Indian state to institute a ban on such an unethical practice. This case involved a lesbian couple whose parents were opposed to their relationship. Because the two women had left their homes, the parents had individually filed missing complaints. After being sharply interrogated by the police, the couple approached the court seeking protection from police harassment at the insistence of their parents, and from any form of threat or danger to their safety and security. The court not only granted protection to the petitioners, but also issued a slew of interim guidelines. The court's directions forced the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment to provide adequate protection to community members by creating shelter homes with basic amenities like food, clothing, medical care, and recreational facilities. The court also suggested that the government come up with different awareness programs to sensitize police and prison authorities, district and state legal service authorities, health professionals, educational institutions, and most importantly, parents of LGBTQIA+ members.

FRANCE BANS CONVERSION THERAPY

France, recently joined US, Germany, Canada and other countries as it passed a law criminalizing the use of the discredited practice to attempt to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of gay people. The measure was passed unanimously by the National Assembly, 142 votes to 0. President Emmanuel Macron praised the move, tweeting that "being oneself is not a crime".

The French government's equalities and diversity Minster, Elisabeth Moreno, described conversion therapies as “barbaric" and told lawmakers that the suffering they inflict "very often leaves permanent marks on bodies and minds.”

Under the new law, sustained efforts “that aim to modify or reprimand sexual orientation or gender identity” and which impact the physical or mental health of victims are punishable by up to two years in jail and 30,000 euros ($34,000) in fines. The law also includes punishment, which can increase to three years imprisonment and fines of 45,000 euros ($50,000) for attempts involving minors or other particularly vulnerable people.

CONCLUSION

Conversion therapy violates Article 14 of the Indian Constitution [Right to Equality], and Article 19(1) (a) of the Indian Constitution [Freedom of Speech] and also breaches the Mental Health Care Act 2017, which refrains any kind of discrimination with the patient on basis of sexual orientation or any other reasons.

'Conversion therapy,' the term itself is questionable. It portrays an illegal practice as a reform or an ideal process to convert someone into a righteous state of mind and body. Identifying as a member of a LQBTQIA+ community is a right and a preference which cannot be hindered by anyone. India, especially after the Navtej Singh Johar’s case has become more cognizant and sensitive towards the citizens’ gender and preferences.