LGBT rights in the Suren Confederacy

LGBT rights in the Suren Confederacy
Same-sex sexual activity	Legal / tolerated
Adoption	Illegal
Military service	Legal
Discrimination protections	Dependent on rank and status in society

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual rights are determined on the basis of the interpretation of the Harmonious Society Act of Babkha in the context of the Suren Confederacy.

To this end the law is mostly silent upon the matter, and the teachings of Zurvanism and the moral values of the community take precedence. There does exist however a basis for the protection of those who attain the dignity of citizenship, particularly when they form a household in a manner provided for under the law.

Every citizen, subject to the provisions of this Code, is equal before the law and as subject to it has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and, in particular, without discrimination based the individuals determining biological, social, and cultural characteristics.

—Article 5, Section 1, of the Harmonious Society Act

The Master of the Household may contract relationships with other persons such as is to his or her liking regardless of sex or gender for the purpose of recreation and the enjoyment thereof. a. Partners and offspring derived thereof may be provided for adequately but shall be debarred from the inheritance of the household. b. Recreational partnerships shall not be contracted with citizens of equal standing as to do so will leave the consenting partner attainted of caste shame.

—Article 28, Section 3, of the Harmonious Society Act

It should be noted that the highest echelons of society, the Imperial and Satrapan dynasties, enjoy the right to organise their households in any manner that accords with their proclivities, and as such they are not to be regarded as subject to any of the constraints detailed within this article.

Nothing shall prohibit the Satrapan and Imperial Households of the Emirs from organising their households in the manner most fitting to them as is appropriate for the caste that is apart from the common masses.

—Article 30 of the Harmonious Society Act

Detailed chart

Same-sex sexual activity legal	Not prohibited but being perceived as the lesser partner of a social inferior would be considered a transgressive act liable to punishment within the community.
Gender expression	Tolerated within households, subject to the head of household. Subject to communal governance and societal taboos if expressed outside households.
Age of consent	Subject to communal governance and societal taboos
Anti-discrimination laws in employment	Citizens Subjects
Anti-discrimination laws in the provision of goods and services	The provision of goods and services depends upon the discretion of the provider and the social status of the customer.
Conversion therapy	The law is silent on this practice. By inference it may be instigated by the Master of the Household or an employer against a Subject in their service, but not against a Citizen who does not desire it.
Anti-discrimination laws in all other areas (incl. indirect discrimination, hate speech)
Same-sex marriage	The only legal recognition accorded to same-sex relationships pertains to those formed within the context of a citizen's household. In those circumstances a same-sex relationship enjoys a status similar to concubineage.
Recognition of same-sex unions	Within a citizen's household only (as above).
Gay pride activities	Denounced by the Divan of the Surenshah as a "carnival of licentiousness and political subversion" and subjected to persecution accordingly.
Joint and step-child adoption by same-sex couples	A moot point in any event as orphans automatically become wards of the state, to be reared in government facilities for service in the Popular Levy.
Gay people allowed to serve openly in the military	Service in the Popular Levy is required of all subjects and citizens. All rights to self-expression are necessarily curtailed during the period of service, in accordance with the requirements of discipline.
Right to change legal gender	Not provided for under law.
Access to IVF for lesbians	There being no governing law, this practice is socially tolerated and considered a privilege of those with rank and status in society. Discreet clinics have been known to make this service available - for a fee - for those wishing to conform without attracting undue scrutiny.
MSMs allowed to donate blood	The donation of blood is a civic virtue - subject to usual pre-screening protocols.
Third gender	Gender identity is considered to arise from observable biological sex and assigned in formal records accordingly. Hermaphrodites are sometimes kept in more affluent households as curiosities.
Surrogacy	There being no governing law, the practice of surrogacy is socially tolerated and considered a privilege of those with rank and status in society. This is often the duty of supplicants undertaking a Life-Service Bond, although more frequently the bandaka class of unfree persons, but certain Kuls are prized for this duty due to their genetics or general characteristics.