22 June 2012
Hoh Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Phan Thi Thuy Vy (20, left) and Dang Thi Bich Bay (20), both students, relax at the end of the day watching television. They have been together for a year.
Vietnam has historically been unwelcoming to same-sex couples, but in 2012 the Vietnamese government announced it was considering recognizing same-sex marriage, a move that would make it the first Asian country to do so. Despite past human rights issues and a long-standing stigma against homosexuality, parliamentary debate on same-sex marriage was scheduled for 2013. Polls showed that majority public opinion remained opposed to the idea. In August 2012, the country’s first gay pride parade took place in Hanoi.
