Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBT) people in Timor-Leste face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents.

[6] Among the participants of the pride march were LGBT citizens, nuns, religious ministers, tribal folks, students, and government officials.

Since 2022, there are explicit legal protections in health: Since 2009, bias on the basis of sexual orientation has been considered to be an aggravating circumstance in the case of crimes (alongside ethnicity, gender, religion, disability, etc.).

[21] The Code of Conduct for Media Professionals (Regulation 111/STAE/III/07), approved by The National Election Commission, states that professionals and media outlets, when carrying out electoral coverage, must "Use language that is not defamatory, slanderous or aggressive, nor that incites violence, or that discriminates against people, especially based on color, race, origin, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, political or religious choice, and mental disability or physics."

For the purposes of this code, media professionals are journalists and correspondents from the written press, radio and television stations, whether public or private, who work in Timor-Leste.

The Roman Catholic Church has a strong influence in the country and was the main opponent to the constitutional clause to protect LGBT people from discrimination.

In 2002, when the clause was discussed in Parliament, a prominent Christian politician argued there weren't any gay people in Timor-Leste and called homosexuality a "disease".

[8] A 2017 survey of 57 young lesbian and bisexual women as well as transgender men co-authored by activist Bella Galhos found that 86% of the respondents had experienced both physical and psychological violence, including domestic violence, forced marriages and attempts by family members to change their sexual orientation or gender identity.

[34][15][16] LGBT advocacy groups in Timor-Leste include: Hatutan, CODIVA (Coalition on Diversity and Action), and Arco Iris.

[3] The same week, Prime Minister Rui Maria de Araújo declared that "discrimination, disrespect and abuse towards people because of their sexual orientation or gender identity does not provide any benefit to our nation" and that "every person has the potential to contribute to the development of our nation, including the LGBTQ community", thus becoming the first Southeast Asian leader to publicly support LGBT rights.

The event began with a screening of the aforementioned documentary "Dalan ba Simu Malu", and followed with a march led by a local band who played traditional Timorese resistance songs.