Understanding Bisexuality and Way Forward: Online Desk Research on Asian Bisexual PDF

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Understanding Bisexuality and Way Forward: Online Desk Research on Asian Bisexual Prempreeda Pramoj Na Ayutthaya Consultant: Heinrich Boell Foundation South East Asia 1 Contents Acknowledgment …………………………………………………………………………..3 Executive Summary …………………………………………………………..……………4 Introduction……………………………………...

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Understanding Bisexuality and Way Forward: Online Desk Research on Asian Bisexual Prempreeda Pramoj

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Understanding Bisexuality and Way Forward: Online Desk Research on Asian Bisexual Prempreeda Pramoj Na Ayutthaya Consultant: Heinrich Boell Foundation South East Asia

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Contents Acknowledgment …………………………………………………………………………..3 Executive Summary …………………………………………………………..……………4 Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………5 Why do we need to highlight about bisexuality…………………………………………….5 History and Psychoanalytic Theory……………………………………………….………..7 Bisexual Erasure: Sexual Stability versus Sexual Fluidity ………………………..……….8 Being The “B” in ASIA……………………………………………………………………..9 Bisexual Youth…………………………………………………………………………….10 Conclusion and Recommendations: Community Mobilising and Bisexual Visibility…… 12 References ………………………………………………………………………..……….14

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Acknowledgment Thank you for your contributions:
 • Dredge Kang: University of California San Diego, USA
 • Dede Otomo: GAYa Nusantara Indonesia
 • Ronald Baytan: De La Salle University, the Philippines
 • J. Neil C. Garcia: University of the Philippines Diliman
 • Mohamad Shahrani bin Mohamad Tamrin: Malaysian Rights Advocate
 • Alexis Kaewwaen: Together for Equality and Action, TEA Group Thailand

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Executive Summary The literatures review shown that, differences socio-cultural background, people think of bisexaul differently. In the era of identity crisis, not many people identified themselves as bisexual, but commonly they just having sexual activity and attraction to more than one genders. Bisexual people still faces difficulty to present themselves even within LGBT community, this is one factor possibly cause negative consequences on self perception and mental health condition. The meaning of bisexuality also implied to “dual attraction,” this sense bisexuality can be considered as a sexual orientation, lifestyle, and without identity, behaviourally bisexual needed to be count. Information regarding embryological studies criticised that actually “we are all bisexual,” because of the presence of both sets of sexual organs in the human embryo until the 3rd month of development. Human had been androgynous, before the 3rd month in this sense. However, in real life situation the stigmatisation remains. Thus people possibly reluctance to choose between homoheterosexuality, regularly asexuality gets choose rather than bisexuality. This ensure the heterosexual–homosexual binary, sometime replaced by “having and not having a sexual orientation.” Bisexual is simply not currently understand as people who are attracted to more than one genders, but sexes. The misconception associated invisibility is better explained by “bisexual erasure” than bisexual nonexistence. The “monosexual” defending norms of monogamy have an input to bisexual erasure. In the era of HIV epidemic monosexual/monogamy can be considered as one strategy for HIV prevention. The non-monogamy associated with bisexuals has been connected to HIV infection, labelling bisexual “promiscuity" as a bridge between the "infected" gay and the "uninfected" straight. Promiscuity become bisexual badge, often perceived to be "intrinsically" nonmonogamous. In term of cultural aspect, there are some “culturally overlooking” beyond female bisexual exercised by patriarchal background and phallocentrism. Female same sex/bisexual activity can be practice under silence. Meanwhile, some faith based regulation can be a stimulation for people to exercise bisexuality, whenever they can remain their heterosexual family. In term of youth population, bisexual youth often struggle with their sexual orientation and frequently feel like they have no one to turn to for help. Various sectors who work on LGBT issue in Asia are in needed to significantly concern on further implementation to ensure the “B” is not left behide with the appropriate activity to strengthen bisexual community.

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Introduction About 10 years ago I was inspired by Herdt and Boxer’s (1995) article, Bisexuality: Toward a Comparative Theory of Identities and Culture. The article ensured the presence of some traditional rituals and belief systems, such as that in Zambia of Papua New Guinea, which allow people the freedom to engage in same-sex sexual activities as one would with heterosexual sexual activities. This article provides examples of differences in socio-cultural backgrounds, and the diverse perspectives towards bisexuality. It also provided another example under the urban context of adolescents in Chicago, USA, who are members of a gay and lesbian-identified youth group named Horizons. According to them, same-sex contact between heterosexually active adolescent males is typically not defined as “homosexuality” and does not lead to the sexual identity “gay.” Young men who may occasionally have sex with other men still engaged in opposite sex activity, and revealed the normative socialization of the larger society toward participation in heterosexual activity. Some members of this youth group, both gay and lesbian, had had same sex sexual experiences, as well as heterosexual ones, in which they commented on the latter lacking emotions and intimacy. We hear more and more about identity crisis, and not many people identify themselves as Bisexual, but have sexual activities and attraction to more than one gender. My purpose for this study is to further explore the subject of Bisexuality with aims to focus on behaviour, lifestyle, and attraction, as well as ways to advocate or further campaign for the visibility of Bisexuality. The methodology of this paper utilized online desk reviews; qualitative literature review through secondary data available online, relevant to Bisexuality. Moreover, the online consultations was conducted with experts and activists, in Asia Pacific region. The Snowball Technique was also applied to get recommendations from these experts on relevant academic papers, or related to Bisexuality issues. The papers’ publish date was also a selection criteria to ensure updated and contemporary information about bisexuality in the Asian context, or relevance to the regional cultural background. This online desk review may present some limitations in missing details, components or underreporting on specific issues, due to the given time frame of 7 working days. One thing to also take into consideration is the minimum amount of research papers and information regarding bisexuality in the Asian context, especially the ones available online, a large majority of studies are based in the USA. Some relevant papers are widely used and cited in the field, but parts may be outdated in some aspects.

Why do we need to highlight about bisexuality issue According to a previous research on bisexuality of mine1, several points in this context needs further exploration. There are no specific terms for women who are bisexuals in Thailand, only for men. One such term for male bisexuality is “Seua Bi.” “Seua" means “tiger” or “Gangster” in slang. Seua Bi was also the name of a famous Thai gangster 50 years ago who was rumoured to have sexual relations with both sexes. Because of the social expectations that result from constructs against women, their sexual orientation remains solely for the purpose of intercourse with their cis male husbands. Interestingly, nowadays many transwomen, for example some internet celebrities , have become publicly open about having relationships with tomboys, or transmen (terms depend on their 1Pramoj

Na Ayutthaya, P. (2007) Seeking Seua Bai: Fluidity within Bisexuality in Thailand.

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partners’ self-identity,) aside from the norm of having a cis male partner; a clearly defined example that transwomen have bisexual tendencies as well when their partners’ sexual identities are taken into account. In one from many examples, Dujdill, a Cabaret showgirl and internet celebrity from Pattaya, demonstrates the classic case of the Thai transwoman who believed she has support her male partner in order to maintain the relationship, even when she barely had enough to sustain herself. Later she discovered that her partner was already engaged to a woman, and was deeply hurt. It was during this time that she was approached by a Tomboy who she was familiar with from backstage chats they had at the theatre she worked at. Eventually they entered into a relationship. When asked by a friend once about her relationships, her answer was that here should not be any comparisons between a man and a tomboy to begin with. According to her, sex with men was very pleasurable, but her identity is more accepted by her tomboy partner. It’s not an easy task to come across a bisexual identified person in Asia; it’s even harder (and have no reason) to encourage them to come out. This is the root cause we rarely see bisexual people stand up and advocate for the rights, and received limited or no bisexual specific activities/services in Asia. This also makes demographic information like, size of population difficult to identify. However, there are some studies in the United States that demonstrates an overall picture that the size of the bisexual population would be attractive enough for policy makers, activists, and academia to take account into their further work on the topic. Nevertheless, it should be taken into consideration that this is in an American context. The Movement Advancement Project2 (MAP) showed that in 2016, Bisexual people made up about half (52%) of the LGB population in the United States. Research also finds that a substantial percentage of Americans experience attraction to, or have had sexual contact with individuals of more than one gender, “even if they don’t identify as bisexual.” There are over 9 million LGBT people in the United States. More than half that amount identify as bisexuals who experience a higher rate of poverty, discrimination, and poor physical and mental health, in comparison to their lesbian and gay peers. This point toward an urgent need to provide services and support for this segment of the community. Studies in Australia and Canada have shown deep disparities in mental health between bisexuals and their peers. According to the American Journal of Public Health, among women, bisexual women report the highest prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (26.6% versus 6.6% of straight women), with high prevalence of PTSD setting the stage for poorer health throughout adulthood. Bisexuals have higher suicidal rates: one study found bisexuals were four times more likely, and lesbian and gay adults two times more likely to report attempted suicide than straight adults. Another study found that bisexual men were 6.3 times more likely to seriously consider suicide in their lifetime, and gay men 4.1 times more likely than straight men. A recent study in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that bisexual teens who reported suicidal thoughts did not report a decrease in these thoughts as they aged into adulthood, unlike their straight peers. In terms of health services, bisexual people are less likely than gay men or lesbians to come out to their health care providers.

2

Headquarter based in Boulder, Colorado, USA

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History and Psychoanalytic Theory Bisexual people still face challenges in coming out even within the LGBT community, this is why mental health issues significantly presents itself throughout various studies. Esther (2009) mentioned, it is vital to ensure that self-identified bisexuals and bi-questioning people receive sensitive and respectful treatment based on that individual’s needs. According to Esther, bisexuality can be described as both “bigenderism” (having two sexual identities) and “dual attraction,” (being attracted to two genders) so that bisexuality can be considered as a sexual orientation, identity and lifestyle. In the case of male bisexuality, sometimes people question their “sexual roles” when engaging in sexual activities with other male partners while in a relationship with a woman; do they become top or bottom role? It is more interesting to note that, even men engaging in receptive anal sex, may still see themselves as masculine, when they feel their masculinity contradicts sexual norms. Esther (2009) ensured Darwin’s theory of evolution as a classical historical component associated to bisexuality, in The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (1871.) Darwin described the increased differentiation between the sexes as the mechanism that gradually produced modern, civilized human beings. Embryological studies of pre-birth fetuses demonstrate the presence of both sets of sexual organs in the human embryo until the 3rd month of development. Before the 3rd month, humans remain androgynous (not presenting any clear biological difference in the presentation of their sexual appearance or organs). This is the cause of instinctual bisexual aims requires a mourning process to accept the mono-sexuality later in real life. Esther gave an example of a relational psychoanalyst patient (a patient studied on unconscious reactions to relationships with others), who was erotically responsive to men and women, felt guilty that he might be gay and wished for the analyst to reassure him that he was not. It is striking that a sexually active patient’s reluctance to choose between homo- and heterosexuality was conceptualized as choosing asexuality, rather than bisexuality. Although queer theory3 emphasizes the fluidity of human sexuality and in certain ways establishes fluid eroticism as an ideal, the tendency in queer theory in general, and in queer-theoryinspired psychoanalytic writing in particular, is to give at best a slight view to bisexuality as a sexual identity or lifestyle. Some queer theorists may seem to contradict themselves in their belief of a binary view of sexuality in which the heterosexual–homosexual opposites has been replaced with a deductive argument between “having and not having a sexual orientation.” Psychoanalytic theorizing on bisexuality remains similar to that of homosexuality a few decades ago. Heterosexual analysts were the ones conducting these studies about homosexuality, of which they had no firsthand knowledge or experience of, while those experiencing homosexual lifestyles had no voice, as they were either barred from admission into psychoanalytic institutes or had to remain closeted within them. It was only when gay and lesbian identified analysts were finally able to voice their theories that the questioning of inaccuracies in pathologizing psychoanalytic notions of homosexuality had begun. Because the bisexual community is developing and exerting its influence on culture at large differently from the gay community, it should not be expected that the same processes of psychoanalysis will occur. Nonetheless, to initiate the process of change in the psychoanalytic thinking on bisexuality, it is vital that bi-identified analytic

3Queer

theory; beyond traditional views towards gender and sexuality.

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practitioners make themselves heard, critiques the theory on its own premises and offering viable alternative conceptualizations.

Bisexual Erasure: Sexual Stability versus Sexual Fluidity Esther elaborated ways beyond heterosexual-homosexual binary opposition as “having and not having a sexual orientation.” Kenji (2000) also challenged the straight/gay binary, that it was difficult to hold the bisexual steadily visible. The question that should be asked is why we have divided orientation into categories that tend to suppress the existence of bisexuality; that it does not conform to the two sexual binaries. Bisexuality also suggests that these two binaries are defined through biology rather than culturally. This is the classic division made between anatomical sex and social gender. Bisexuals are simply not currently understood as people who are attracted to both genders, but anatomies; there is a clear distinction between gender and anatomy. The root cause is doubtlessly linked to the ways in which they perceive and appreciate "biological" sex. Kenji claims that bisexuality is invisible relative to homosexuality and the invisibility is better explained by bisexual erasure4 than by bisexual nonexistence, yet major sexuality studies demonstrate that the number of bisexuals is greater than, or comparable to the number of homosexuals. This suggests that bisexual invisibility is not a reflection of the fact that there are fewer bisexuals than there are homosexuals in the population, but is rather a product of social erasure. Heterosexuals and self-identified lesbians and gays both deploy the same three strategies of bisexual erasure: class erasure, individual erasure, and de-legitimization. The first interest monosexuals5 have in bisexual erasure is in stabilizing sexual orientation. The second is retaining the importance of sex as a distinguishing trait in society. The final is in defending norms of monogamy. Stabilizing sexual orientation relieves people of the anxiety of questioning their identities. Heterosexuals have a more specific interest in ensuring the stability of heterosexuality because that identity is “privileged” over homosexuality; they view that stability as the foundation for the "immutability defense" (that one’s sexuality remains static) or for effective political mobilization. They can only prove their sexual identity and orientation by showing evidence of attraction to the opposite gender when it is an impossibility to prove that they are heterosexual in a world in which bisexuality exists, as a person attracted to the opposite gender could be either heterosexual or bisexual. Moreover, when sex is used as a basis for identity because a person can only be either heterosexual or homosexual, a case of discrimination occurs towards sexual orientation and bisexuality. Heterosexuals stand strong in their defense of monogamy as they view bisexuality with the same contempt as promiscuity. This perception perpetuates the connection of bisexuality with HIV infection. Therefore, bisexuals are seen as bridges between the infected and non-infected. Whereas the homosexual interest in monogamy particularly stems from the need to assimilate into "mainstream" society. Bisexuality threatens both of these interests because bisexuals are often perceived to be non-monogamous in nature.

4Invisible 5Those

bisexuality from genders classification.

attracted to one gender only, can be heterosexual or homosexual.

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Being The “B” in Asia The Being LGBT in Asia was initiated in 2014 by UNDP in partnership with USAID to bring together key stakeholders together to foster a greater understanding of the marginalization, exclusion, discrimination, and violence faced by LGBTI and people of diverse sexual orientation and gender identities in the region. In 2014, country reports were launched to present these situations from 8 countries involved in the programme, an initiative at the time. Almost all of those country reports provided limited information about bisexuality. Some reports like those from The Philippines, China, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia did, however mention cultural aspects or movements associated with bisexuality. The Filipino bisexual community remains under-represented in the LGBT community, not only because of the stigmatization of bisexuals by both heterosexual and homosexual communities, but also because of the conflicting perceptions among Filipinos on defining the bisexual identity. The “Bakla" (gay men) does not believe in the existence of “Silahis" (bisexual men.) Meanwhile, the average man and woman believe Silahis are exist due to the strict rule; “he is silahis because he is bakla, either because he has children, or bec...