Bangkok saw its first official Pride parade yesterday (Sunday), to celebrate gender diversity and to advocate forgender equality.

Thousands of LGBTQ+ community members joined the festive “Bangkok Naruemit Pride Parade” on Silom Road, many of them dressed in rainbow-themed costumes and waving rainbow flags to celebrate the occasion.

Many LGBTQ+ activists also joined the march and took theopportunity to demand basic rights for the LGBTQ+ community, such as same-sex marriage, an end to sexual harassment and the decriminalisation of sex workers.

Newly elected Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt joined the parade, after taking part in a Pride Month celebration at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre on Saturday, where he announced that pride month will be one of the 12 monthly festivals in Bangkok.

Two bills on LGBTQ+ couples, including one on civil partnerships, are awaiting parliamentary deliberation. The draft same sex marriage law, dubbed the “marriage equality” bill, seeks equal rights,including marriage, for LGBTQ+ couples, while the draft civil partnership bill would recognise same-sex unions and grant almost the same legal rights as married couples.