Call Fr SOGI reps at HR Defenders Forum

Through Mdm. Margaret Sekkagya, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and the 4th Regional Human Rights Defenders Forum:

We enjoin our respective governments to:

* Recognize sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) rights as legitimate human rights
* Undertake awareness-raising programs through education and the media, and through issuing appropriate policies, regulations and guidelines to promote, in a concrete and effective way, a balanced public understanding of the rights of people with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities;
* Protect the right of free association and expression of people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities in an environment that is safe, secure, and free from threats and violence;
* Amend discriminatory laws, and enact legislations that promote human dignity and equality, and guarantee the full enjoyment of all human rights by people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities;
* Fully comply with international human rights instruments, as well as the Yogyakarta Principles on the application on international human rights standard in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity;
* Guarantee the full participation of people with diverse orientations and gender identities in all spheres of life – whether social, legal, political, economic, educational, public health, media, traditional or cultural – in a non-discriminatory, equal and fair manner;
* Respect the right of people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities to access to public services, establishments and housing, equal employment opportunities, education, right to organize, and medical and health services.

We call on our governments to prohibit:

* Forced medical/psychological examination;
* Violence and harassment including that committed by law enforcement officers;
* Stigmatization and discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, sexual orientation or gender identity;
* Using public morality, public security, and interpretations of traditions and religions to discriminate against people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities or in any way impair their full enjoyment of all human rights.

Recommendations to all human rights defenders

We enjoin our colleagues, friends, and fellow human rights defenders to:

Acknowledge that LGBT activists and advocates are HRDs too, and are part of the human rights defenders network

* Recognize the special vulnerability of HRDs of SOGI because they are subject to the same risks of the LGBT Community whose rights and interests they are seeking to promote and protect
* Include the protection of the rights of people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities in their Human Rights Action Plans;
* Disseminate UN Pronouncements and Resolutions that speak about sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI), including popularizing the Yogyakarta Principles, as among their Human Rights information, education and communication materials;
* Advocate amongst Human Rights bodies and mechanisms to look beyond existing treaties and conventions, or current definitions of what constitutes a “marginalized” sector and instead recognize the unique situation of people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities;
* Encourage more legal professionals and human rights experts to work in the field of sexual orientation law using the human rights framework and SOGI;
* Encourage and work for capacity building (all aspects of the defense of human rights) and enjoin the claimholders of rights to equip themselves with basic knowledge about law and human rights as a first line of defense;
* Recognize that SOGI is a crosscutting issue that is present in varied Human Rights concerns, and that people of diverse sexual orientation and gender identity are present and active in civil society organizations as human rights defenders;
* Create a safe environment within civil society organizations for colleagues of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities, and encourage them to speak up on SOGI-related issues;
* Survey areas of synergy to build alliance with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) organizations in legislation advocacy;
* Invite inputs and participation from LGBTIQ organizations in shadow reporting (UPR, ICCPR, ICESCR, CEDAW, etc.);
* Ensure that national human rights institutions (NHRI) include SOGI issues and LGBTIQ organizations in their work.

We call on human rights defenders of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities to:

Map out allies in the recognition of SOGI rights among local, national, and regional organizations;

* Conduct regular meetings of national LGBTIQ network to identify strengths and weaknesses and areas of cooperation;
* Make individual and organizational security plans that consider the wellness and protection of human rights defenders.