On Dec. 10, a joint sitting of both houses of parliament in Bhutan saw 63 of its 69 total members vote in favour of amending Sections 213 and 214 of the country s penal code on unnatural sex , with the remaining six members absent.
According to the
Associated Press (AP), the amendment entails changing these two sections to clarify that homosexuality between two adults shall not be considered unnatural sex.
The amendments now require the approval of Bhutan s King in order to become law.
Prior to amendment, homosexuality had been classified as a petty misdemeanour which carried an imprisonment term of between a month to a year, Bhutanese media