Nearly 70 percent of Taiwanese support marriage equality for same-sex couples, up about 32 percentage points from before it was legalized five years ago, the Executive Yuan’s latest survey on gender equality showed on Friday.
The Cabinet’s Department of Gender Equality released its annual telephone survey that seeks to gauge public opinion on matters of gender equality.
Of the 1,076 valid answers, 69.1 percent agreed that same-sex couples should have the right to marry.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
May 24 is to mark five years since marriage equality was officially legalized in Taiwan, following a Council of Grand Justices decision in 2017 declaring the ban unconstitutional.
This year’s figure is 6.5 percentage points higher than last year’s, and 31.7 percentage points higher than before legalization in 2018.
In addition, 76.9 percent of respondents said that same-sex couples should have the right to adopt children — 2.8 percentage points higher than last year and 23.1 percentage points higher than in 2018.
Asked whether single women and lesbian couples should be able to have children with donated sperm, nearly 60 percent of respondents agreed.
Meanwhile, 75.4 percent said there is no problem with couples living together without plans to marry, while 82.7 percent said that such couples should not be subject to discrimination or unequal treatment.
Regarding transgender issues, 91.4 percent said they could be coworkers with a transgender person.
About 57.4 percent agreed that transgender and intersex people should be allowed to select a third gender option on their ID, a 2.6 percentage point increase from last year.
About 47.4 percent said that transgender people should be allowed to change the gender on their ID without undergoing gender affirming surgery.
Of those who disagreed, 28.2 percent changed their mind when asked whether a psychiatric evaluation or medical certificate could serve as a replacement.
Meanwhile, 89.1 percent of people thought government revisions to the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act, Gender Equality in Employment Act and Gender Equity Education Act last year would effectively prevent sexual harassment.
The three acts were revised in mid-August last year after the months-long #Metoo movement that began in late May and saw dozens of celebrities accused of having committed or attempted to commit sexual harassment or assault.
The survey was conducted between April 19 and 23 among people aged 20 or older and had a margin of error of 2.99 percentage points.
The full report can be accessed at https://gec.ey.gov.tw/.
Additional reporting by CNA
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