A Major Step for LGBTQ+ Rights
In a major step for LGBTQ+ rights, the Netherlands has passed a law criminalizing conversion therapy, making it illegal to carry out practices that try to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
The Dutch Senate approved the legislation by a vote of 57 to 15 after years of campaigning by survivors, activists and LGBTQ+ organizations, including COC Netherlands, one of the world’s oldest LGBTQ+ advocacy groups.
Under the new law, people who carry out conversion therapy can face fines of up to €27,500 and prison sentences of up to two years. Professionals found guilty may also be banned from practising. The legislation additionally makes it illegal to advertise conversion therapy services.
What Is Conversion Therapy?
Conversion therapy is an umbrella term for practices that claim to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. According to COC Netherlands, these practices can take many forms, including pseudo-therapies, workshops, seminars, religious counselling, faith-healing rituals, camps and exorcisms.
Advocates have spent nearly 15 years pushing for the ban, arguing that conversion therapy is both ineffective and harmful. Earlier this month, activists and survivors delivered more than 8,000 signatures to the Senate in support of the legislation.
Survivors Welcome the Decision
Following the vote, COC Chair Myrtille Danse welcomed the decision, calling it a long-awaited victory for survivors.
“Finally justice for victims who often suffer from conversion disorders for life,” Danse said. “Finally clarity: ‘cure’ is a myth, you are good as you are, and attempts at ‘cure’ are prohibited and punishable.”
For many survivors, the law represents long-awaited recognition of the harm caused by conversion practices. Among those who campaigned for the ban was Jacques Zonne, who said he spent two years confined in an attempt to “cure” his homosexuality.
“Your entire identity is broken down. That trauma never goes away,” Zonne said.
Why Experts Oppose Conversion Therapy
The ban also reflects growing international agreement that conversion therapy is harmful. A 2020 United Nations report found that conversion therapy practices can cause severe psychological and physical harm and called for a global ban.
Major medical organizations have reached similar conclusions, warning that attempts to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity are ineffective and can have lasting impacts on mental health and well-being.
Part of a Wider European Movement
The Netherlands now joins a growing list of European countries that have banned conversion practices, including Germany, France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Malta and Cyprus.
Momentum is also growing across the European Union. In May, the European Commission formally condemned conversion practices and announced plans to encourage all EU member states to ban them. The Commission also pledged support for awareness campaigns, survivor support services and research into the scale and impact of conversion practices across Europe.
