Maintaining an LGBT presence at the Human Rights Council

ILGA's efforts to have sexual orientation and gender identity come out at the United Nations grew in importance in 2006 and organised around three aspects:

- ILGA held its XXIII World Conference in Geneva, home of the United Nations Human Rights Council
- Gaining the right to speak in our own name at the United Nations: the ECOSOC campaign

- Maintaining an LGBT presence at the Human Rights Council at its second session in October 2006

The Human Rights Council held its first session in June 2006 after the dissolution of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in April.

ILGA brought 26 activists from around the world to Geneva for the second session of the Human Rights Council, held in October 2006, thanks to the support of the Swedish Foreign Office; RFSL, the Swedish LGBT federation; and RFSU, Swedish Federation for Sexual Education.

* Activists participated in a training on Human Rights mechanisms at the UN facilitated by Kim Vance from Arc International. They liaised with their permanent missions and attended the UNHRC.

* A delegation of ILGA activists is invited for the second time by the GRULAC, a gathering of government representatives from the Latin American and Caribbean region. Together with Arc International, ILGA presents our struggle for recognition of LGBT rights at the UN and stresses the importance of ECOSOC recognition. The MERCOSUR Human Rights seminar on LGBT rights planned for 2007 is also mentioned.

* ILGA organised four public panels within the United Nations, thanks to the support of the Swedish Foreign Office and in collaboration with RFSL, the Swedish LGBT federation and RFSU, Swedish Federation for Sexual Education. Read the speeches given at those panels:

Lesbian and Bisexual Women – invisible and doubly discriminated

Transgender: An emerging human rights issue

Voices from the Global South: Lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people come out globally

Recognition of LGBT NGOs by the United Nations

LGBT voices from the UN
Read the speeches on LGBT rights given in the plenary of the Human Rights Council

ILGA collaborated with Arc International in the campaign leading to the Norwegian Statement at the third session of the Human Rights Council November/December 2006

*ILGA liaised with its members in order to secure a broad and cross-regional support to the NGO Statement in favour of the Norwegian Statement.

*Together with IGLHRC and Global Rights, ILGA was also instrumental in getting the United States of America endorse the statement. Read the letter to Condoleezza Rice by Congressman and Barney Frank and Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin.