In South Asia and around the world, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LBT) people face unique and heightened barriers to abortion access. The Center’s Asia Program, in collaboration with the South Asia Reproductive Justice and Accountability Initiative (SARJAI) network, examines these legal and social barriers in a new briefing paper titled Intersecting Realities.

Research on abortion access has so far mostly focused on cisgender and heterosexual women, leading to the erasure of queer women, transgender men and transmasculine people who experience pregnancy. This paper bridges that gap, drawing on in-depth interviews with sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) organizations that work closely with queer people in South Asia.  

The paper provides legal context on abortion and queer rights in Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, unpacking how abortion restrictions disproportionately impact the LBT community and highlighting different forms of discrimination within the healthcare system. Targeting policymakers, advocates, and service providers, it concludes with a set of recommendations to remove intersectional barriers to abortion across all levels.  

Brototi Dutta, Senior Advocacy Advisor, notes: “This report fills a crucial and glaring gap in research around understanding how intersectional gender and sexuality identities influence access to abortion in South Asia. Through this research undertaken by our SARJAI youth advocate Vinitha Jayaprakasan, we have been able to identify specific barriers to full abortion access and provided a roadmap for reform. The briefing paper is an important advocacy tool to promote and fight for progressive SRHR rights for LBT community across South Asia.”