HRC SESSION 47 (JUNE – JULY 2021) – ILGA WORLD’S ENGAGEMENT

Geneva, 21 June to 15 July 2021
ILGA World’s involvement at the 47th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC)

 

Reports:

• summary of SOGIESC issues mentioned in the reports presented during the 47th Human Rights Councilan inter-governmental body within the United Nations which has the responsibility to promote and protect human rights. It is comprised of 47 member States, each elected to 3-year terms by the 193 member States of the United Nations. More session
• compilation of notes on the Interactive Dialogue with the Independent Expert on SOGI

In this section:

Statements at the Human Rights Council

• Item 3 – Interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing
• Item 3 – Interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on health
• Item 3 – Interactive dialogue with the Independent Expert on SOGIabbreviation standing for sexual orientation and gender identity More
• Item 3 – Interactive dialogue with the Independent Expert on SOGI
• Item 3 – Interactive dialogue with Working Group on discriminationunequal or unfair treatment which can be based on a range of grounds - such as age, ethnic background, disability, and diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions or sex characteristics, amongst others. More against women

Side events

• An epidemic of violence: defending the lives of transgender women
• Feminist and LGBTIacronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex people. Although this is not the acronym available to describe people of diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, and sex characteristics, it is the most commonly used in United Nations spaces and advocacy. More movements: uniting is our strenght
• Rights at risk: time for action

Adoption of UPR outcomes

• Nepal
• Austria
• Georgia

Statements at the Human Rights Council

 

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON ADEQUATE HOUSING

During the interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, we expressed our concern about the discrimination LGBTI people face in accessing housing.
Click here to read the statement.

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON HEALTH

In this joint statement – delivered with ILGA-Europe, we highlighted the “need for intersectional policies and projects addressing inequalities in health sector based on sexual orientationrefers to a person’s capacity for profound emotional, affectional and sexual attraction to - and intimate and sexual relations with - individuals of a different gender or the same gender or more than one gender. More, gender identityrefers to a person’s deeply felt internal and individual experience of gender, which may or may not correspond with the sex assigned at birth. More, gender expressionrefers to how a person presents their gender through physical appearance – including dress, hairstyles, accessories, cosmetics – and mannerisms, speech, behavioural patterns, names and personal references. More, and sex characteristicsa term that refers to physical features relating to sex - including genitalia and other sexual and reproductive anatomy, chromosomes, hormones, and secondary physical features emerging from puberty. More, together with other grounds – notably, genderrefers to a social construct which places cultural and social expectations on individuals based on their assigned sex. More.”
Click here to read the statement.

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH THE INDEPENDENT EXPERT ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY (SOGI)

During the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council, we highlighted how protecting LGBT persons from any kind of violence and discrimination is part of obligations enshrined in international human rights lawa legal system laying down obligations which States are bound to respect. By becoming parties to international treaties, States assume obligations and duties under international law to respect, protect and fulfil human rights – including by putting into place domestic measures and legislation. Where domestic legal proceedings fail to address human rights abuses, mechanisms and procedures for individual complaints or communications are available at the regional and international levels to help ensure that international human rights standards are respected. More. We also welcomed the initiatives of States coming together to create the Group of Friends of the SOGI mandate.
Click here to read the statement.

 

 

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH THE INDEPENDENT EXPERT ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY (SOGI)

During the 47th UN Human Rights Council, at the dialogue with the Independent Expert on SOGI, we highlighted how – thanks to years feminist activism and UN institutional changes, we not only recognise that women’s rights are human rights, but we contextualize gender as a social construct. “Transadjective/umbrella term to describe a person whose gender identity does not match the sex they were assigned at birth. More and lesbianadjective/noun to describe a woman whose enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction is to other women. Women and non-binary people may use this term to describe themselves. More women have been contributing to feminism from the very beginning, and LGBT movement in all parts of the world have feminist and women’s organisations as the most consistent allies.”
Click here to read our statement.

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH WORKING GROUP ON DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN

In this statement, prepared in consultation with MozaiQ LGBT Association and with inputs from Identity, we welcomed the Working Group’s thematic report on women’s and girls’ sexual and reproductive health rights in crisis. We called on the WG to mention lesbian, bisexualadjective used to describe a person who has the capacity to form enduring physical, romantic, and/ or emotional attractions to those of the same gender or to those of other genders. More, trans, intersexan umbrella term for the spectrum of variations of sex characteristics that naturally occur within the human species. Intersex people are born with variations of sex characteristics (such as genitals, reproductive organs, hormonal and chromosomal patterns) that are more diverse than stereotypical definitions of male or female bodies. Up to 1.7% of the global population are born with such traits; yet, because their bodies are seen as different, intersex children and adults are often stigmatised and subject to harmful practices – including in medical settings - and discriminated against. More, and queerpreviously used as a derogatory term to refer to LGBT individuals in the English language – and still perceived as offensive by some - queer has been reclaimed by people who identify beyond traditional gender categories and heteronormative social norms. Although not universally accepted, it is often used as a catch-all to include many people within the larger community of people with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, and sex characteristics. More (LBTIQ) women and persons explicitly as “their sexual and reproductive health rights are affected by crises disproportionately.”
Click here to read our statement.

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

During the dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, Melania Geymonat delivered the ILGA World statement: “We call on all states to recognise hatred against LBTI women as an aggravating circumstance for rape and other crimes, and to ensure adequate investigation, due process and punishment for so-called ‘corrective rape’ and other forms of sexual violence against LBTI women.”
Click here to read the statement (in Spanish).

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY/ 1

During the 47th UN Human Rights Council, we highlighted how gender-based breaches of privacy deny individuals the ability to exercise a human right, and they are discriminatory in nature.
Click here to read the statement.

 

ITEM 3 – INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE WITH SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY/ 2

During the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Privacy, we called on States to develop and secure a universally agreed and internationally binding multilateral consensus on privacy in different fields that protects the right to privacy of all people regardless of any factors, including gender and sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sexrefers to the classification of a person as male, female, or other - usually made at birth, written on a birth certificate, and usually based on the appearance of their external anatomy. A person’s sex, however, is actually a combination of bodily characteristics, including chromosomes, hormones, internal and external reproductive organs, and secondary sex characteristics. More characteristics (SOGIESCabbreviation standing for sexual orientation and gender identity & expression, and sex characteristics. More).
Click here to read the statement.

ITEM 3 – ANNUAL DISCUSSION ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS: VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS WITH DISABILITIES

During the annual discussion on women’s rights at the 47th UN Human Rights Council, we called on States to support civil society groups working on the intersections of gender, disability, and sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC).
Click here to read the statement.

Side events

• An epidemic of violence: defending the lives of transgender women
  Date: Wednesday 23 June 2021
  Time: 15.00 – 16.30 PM CESTThis event took place in the context of the 5th Trans Advocacy Week at the 47th UN Human Rights Council in Geneva to give a global overview of the epidemic of violence faced by transgender women. Panelists shed light on how anti-transgender stigma, denial of opportunity, and intersecting vulnerabilities compound to create a culture of violence targeting transgender women. During the event, the ways we can directly make our societies safer places for transgender persons were highlighted.

  Follow this link to learn more

• Feminist and LGBTI movements: uniting is our strenght
  Date: Wednesday 7 July 2021
  Time: 2.00 – 3.30 PM CESTThe fight for LGBTIQ+ human rights and the fight to advance gender equality are inextricably linked. And yet, anti-trans violence and hate increase day by day and trans, and non-binarya person who does not identify exclusively as a man or a woman. While many also identify as trans, not all non-binary people do. Non-binary can also be used as an umbrella term encompassing identities such as agender, bigender, genderqueer or gender-fluid. More people have been targeted specifically by both anti-rights and anti-gender actors that seek to revert gender equality gains. Building on the momentum, States, and organisations are co-hosting a global, diverse, cross-regional event. This occasion brings together women and LGBTIQ+ human rights defenders to speak to the challenges and opportunities created by the crises we face today, and to share reflections on the importance of inclusive and intersectional feminist LGBTI mobilisation.

  Follow this link to learn more.

• Rights at risk: time for action
  
Date: Tuesday 13 July 2021
  Time: 2:00 – 3:30 PM CESTThis dialogue among UN and civil society panelists will allow to hear more about how nationalist and fundamentalist trends worldwide are concretely manifesting as a backlash against rights related to gender and sexuality in human rights systems. We will highlight the new Observatory on the Universality of Rights (OURs) Trends Report, Rights at Risk: Time for Action as a tool for action, and explore strategic opportunities that civil society, UN mandate holders, and States can leverage to stem the anti-rights tide within the UN.

  Click here to register

  The event will be in English with simultaneous interpretation in Spanish and French. Closed captioning will be available in English. This event is co-organized by the Permanent Mission of Sweden to the UN in Geneva, the Observatory on the Universality of Rights (OURs), the Center for Reproductive Rights, ILGA World, the International Service for Human Rights, and International Planned Parenthood Federation.

Adoption of UPR outcomes

NEPAL

During the adoption of UPR outcomes of Nepal, we welcomed the Government’s acceptance of recommendations to end sexual and gender-based harassment and violence at all levels of society, including against LGBTI persons. However, we regretted that Nepal’s government noted recommendations concerning marriage equalitywhere national marriage legislation also includes same-sex couples or gender-neutral reference to the spouses. References to “gay marriage” that are sometimes made by media outlets and decision-makers incorrectly are incorrect, as no country has created a marriage law specifically for same-sex couples. More rights of LGBTIQ people.

Click here to read our statement, drafted in consultation with Blue Diamond Society and Mitini Nepal.

AUSTRIA

During the adoption of UPR outcomes or Austria, we thanked all the States that made 11 recommendations to the Austrian government with respect to the human rights of LGBTI people in the country. “In June 2021, the Austrian Parliament has unanimously adopted a resolution that requests the government to effectively protect intersex children from nonconsensual and not necessary treatments. We urge Austria to take further steps to promptly implement these measures”.

Click here to read our statement.

GEORGIA

“We are deeply alarmed by the situation regarding human rights of LGBTI persons in Georgia”, we said during the adoption of UPR outcomes of Georgia – where the country accepted 22 recommendations on issues of sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression, and sex characteristics.  “During the past several days when the Pride in Tbilisi was due to take place, there have been reports of violence, damage of property, and a general fear of the community members installed throughout the country. Together with several Georgian LGBTI community organisations, we urge the Government of Georgia to address these hate crimes in an adequate manner, conduct proper and thorough investigations, and hold those responsible to account”.

Click here to read our joint statement together with ILGA-Europe, drafted in consultation with Women’s Initiatives Supporting Group.