Pride Month: How Asia’s LGBTQ+ icons and allies are creating a more open and equitable world

Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman is a global leader in HIV and AIDS research and response. The infectious diseases expert is the founding director of the Centre of Excellence for Research in AIDS, the organisation that addresses health and social issues associated with the disease through multidisciplinary research, from a clinical science study on the strategic timing of anti-retroviral treatment to behavioural science research on developing an AI chatbot to promote HIV testing.

In addition, Dr Kamarulzaman, who recently served as president of the International AIDS Society, the first woman of Asian descent to assume the role, is the chair of the Malaysian AIDS Foundation. The foundation protects the human rights of people living with AIDS through various programmes, including the PAL Scheme, which offers free second-line medication, as well as Shelter Care, which provides refuge conducive to emotional and physical well-being.

Read Adeeba Kamarulzaman’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

Dubbed “Thailand’s most beautiful transgender woman”, Poyd Treechada Petcharat is a leading voice for the LGBTQ+ community in Asia. In 2023, the former beauty queen, who has advocated for same-sex marriage in her country, married businessman Oak Bhavagha Hongyok at Baan Ar-Jor, the Chinese colonial mansion owned by the Hongyok family. The event made the news for the couple’s lavish wedding costumes, with Poyd wearing a traditional Peranakan bridal gown adorned with gold, jewels and a handmade flower crown. The actress and model has also starred in movies in Thailand and Hong Kong, including the action-comedy film From Vegas to Macau II with Chow Yun-fat, Andy Lau and Carina Lau.

Read Poyd Treechada Petcharat’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

Glen Goei is best known for starring opposite Anthony Hopkins in M. Butterfly at London’s West End, a role that launched his career; and as the filmmaker behind Forever Fever, one of the first Singaporean films that saw worldwide commercial release. But beyond his successes in movies and theatre, Goei is an advocate for equality. For his Unseen series, the creative produced documentaries illustrating the powerful and difficult journeys of marginalised communities in Southeast Asia. In Some Women, director Quen Wang turned the camera on herself to bare her vulnerabilities as a transgender person. And in Baby Queen, Opera Tang navigated queer acceptance as she debuted as a drag queen during the global pandemic.

Goei is also the co-author of the Ready 4 Repeal petition, which seeks to change laws on gay relationships. Of the movement, he said: “We must protect the rights of our minorities, who are our family members, our friends, our colleagues, and our fellow citizens.”

Read Glen Goei’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

After decades of fighting for equality and acceptance, Chia Wei Chi is seeing his efforts bear fruit. Taiwan now serves as a beacon for gay rights around the world, having legalised same-sex marriage in May 2019. In 2023, Taiwan lifted restrictions on same-sex marriage between citizens and foreign nationals and granted joint adoption rights for same-sex couples.

When Chi publicly came out as gay in 1986, he was the first person in Taiwan to do so, and thus helped pave the way for others. The rights advocate challenged the courts, on multiple occasions, to review marriage laws, a fight that ultimately led to Taiwan’s same-sex marriage law, the first in Asia. Often seen raising the rainbow banner at rallies and parades, the symbol of the LGBTQ+ community is proof that fighting for what you believe in creates the change you seek.

Read Chia Wei Chi’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

“My vision with creating Eaton Workshop utilises hospitality as a vehicle to create a better world, by reimagining our physical spaces as a true community centre. With inclusivity as one of our core values, a hotel space becomes a host for those living at the margins and dream of a fairer world,” said founder Katherine Lo in a statement. Reflecting her ideals, Eaton’s Hong Kong location features gender-neutral bathrooms, while its Washington, D.C. hotel has been approved by the mayor’s office as an empowering space for trans-identified people.

Beyond its properties, Eaton Workshop also co-produced the documentary No Justice No Pride, which follows the story of a transgender-rights organisation as it fulfils its role as a safe space for trans and queer people. For Pride Month every year, Eaton holds month-long queer arts and culture programs. The theme for 2024 is “Eclipsed Bodies, Embraced Pride”, which is meant to challenge “societal norms, expectations, and definitions of perfect bodies...[and] invite everyone to step out of the shadows cast by cis-heteronormativity and ableism, celebrating their own paths and thriving on their own terms.”

Read Katherine Lo’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

In May 2019, Taiwan passed its same-sex marriage law, becoming the first in Asia to do so. To celebrate, Mandopop superstar A-mei posted an image of a rainbow flag with a note on Facebook: “I cried when I saw the news... It's come a long way and you can finally be proud of yourselves! My dearest heroes, I really want to hug you one by one. After the rain in the morning, our rainbow is complete.”

The Taiwanese singer has long been a supporter of the LGBTQ+ community. A-mei was one of the first celebrities to sign a petition for same-sex marriage in the country and also led a benefit concert for the cause. She has highlighted equality in many of her songs, as well, with the music video for “Love Is The Only Way” featuring a marriage ceremony between men, and “Rainbow” becoming an anthem for same-sex relationships.

Read A-mei’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

Perhaps the biggest contribution of Bretman Rock to the LGBTQ+ community is his unapologetic presentation of himself as a queer person who wears makeup and enjoys genderfluid fashion on social media (he has 18.8 million followers on Instagram, 16.7 million on TikTok and 8.8 million on YouTube) and everywhere else.

The viral sensation from the Philippines (who is, however, based in Hawaii) has been known to speak about the importance of representation in his many media appearances, from his MTV reality show to magazine features in Teen Vogue and Nylon Manila. In 2021, he became the first openly gay man to appear on the cover of Playboy. “For Playboy to have a male on the cover is a huge deal for the LGBT community… And I’m so pretty,” he said in a tweet shared by the online magazine.

Read Bretman Rock’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

Patrick Sun shares his trove of collected artworks by LGBTQ+ artists or with LGBTQ+ themes through the Sunpride Foundation. He debuted Spectrosynthesis I, the first major LGBTQ+ art show in Asia, at Taipei’s Museum of Contemporary Art in 2017, and launched its second edition at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre two years later.

Through paintings, installations, photographs and video works, Sun advocates for diversity, acceptance and equal rights of the community. In a Living Marketing podcast, he explained why it is important to present gay art in public institutions, sharing how a museum can reach more people: “That has been very helpful. It does raise visibility and respect for the artist and the gay community”. For him, the goal is to build a “more equitable world” through art. In 2023, the art collector co-presented Myth Makers – Spectrosynthesis III at Tai Kwun Contemporary, the first major survey exhibition on LGBTQ+ perspectives in Hong Kong.

Read Patrick Sun’s full profile on Asia’s Most Influential

Tatler Asia’s Most Influential is the definitive list of people shaping our world today. Asia’s Most Influential brings together the region's most innovative changemakers, industry titans and thought leaders who are driving positive impact in Asia and beyond. View the full list here.

NOW READ

The online shopping revolution in Asia is driven by these forward-thinking e-commerce leaders

Meet 6 of Asia’s most influential wealth builders who are shaping the future of finance

How these conservationists are protecting biodiversity in Asia