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22 Dec 2011- News Digest on LGBTI Rights
Articles
" Activists say Australia shares responsibility for latest asylum seeker deaths at sea":
LGBT Asylum News,Refugee Action Coalition, 18 Dec 2011
Australia cannot evade its share of the responsibility foryesterday’s tragic sinking of another asylum boat off Java, according to advocates from the Refugee Action Coalition. The boat is believed to have been carrying Afghan and Iranian refugees.
“Australia’s push for Indonesia to detain asylum seekers and to criminalize people smuggling directly leads to the kind of tragedy we’ve seen yet again today,” said Ian Rintoul, RAC spokesperson.
Scottish government considering gay marriage compromise
ATV Today, 18 Dec 2011
The Scottish government is reportedly considering a compromise which would still allow gay marriages to take place but would take into account some religious opposition to same-sex marriage.
According to reports the SNP is considering a deal which would introduce gay marriage to Scotland but crucially would mean ceremonies would not take place on religious premises. The deal would be a compromise for those religious organisations - such as the Catholic Church - which have strong opposition to gay marriage.
However, the compromise isn't likely to go down well with other religious organisations who have actively campaigned for the introduction of same-sex marriage. Religious groups such as Quakers, Liberal Jews, Pagans and the Humanist Association have all called for same-sex marriage to be legalised.
The Catholic Church in Scotland has also been widely criticised for its vocal opposition to same-sex marriage. The language used by some of its members has come under fire as has its attempts to claim that the SNP would risk losing hundreds of thousands of votes if they legalised gay marriage.
Opinion polls in Scotland have placed public support for gay marriage at 61%. The SNP government is not expected to announce its decision on the legalisation of same-sex marriage until Spring 2012
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Bradley Manning's gender identity comes up in testimony
CNN, 18 Dec 2011
Defense lawyers for an Army private accused in the biggest intelligence leak in U.S. history brought up Saturday a purported female alter ego of Bradley Manning's as they seek to establish his state of mind at the time of the alleged crimes.
The testimony came on the second day of Manning's Article 32 hearing, which coincided with his 24th birthday.
Special agent Calder Robertson of the Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID), testifying by phone from Germany, was asked by one of Manning's attorneys if he knew that the Army private had an alter ego with the name, Breanna Manning. The agent said he was aware Manning used the name in online chats.
Uganda President: Railways before gays
News 24, 16 Dec 2011
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Friday urged international donors not to let concerns for gay rights affect development aid, saying homosexuals also needed roads, power and trains.
"Before anyone gives me a lecture about homosexuals and their rights, first talk about railways," Museveni told delegates at the end of a regional meeting in Kampala attended by five other African presidents.
"Homosexuals also need electricity, homosexuals also need roads, homosexuals also need railways," Museveni said to applause.
Earlier this month, US President Barack Obama ordered all government agencies, including those handing out aid, to put gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights at the centre of US foreign policy.
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NPWJ and the NRPTT welcome the release of the first ever UN Report on LGBTI rights around the world
No Peace Without Justice , 16 Dec 2011
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Statement by Niccolo Figà-Talamanca, Secretary General of No Peace Without Justice:
"No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ) and the Nonviolent Radical Party, Transnational and Transparty (NRPTT) welcome the release of the first ever United Nations Global Report on the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, which details the dramatic record of homophobic and transphobic violence in every region of the world. This violence ranges from murder, torture, hate-motivated violence, arbitrary deprivation of liberty and criminalisation to discrimination in jobs, health care and education.
"This new report is an important stand in support of all vulnerable people around the world who suffer from constant threats, harassment and discrimination based on their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. It should also be considered as a relevant tool to spur the commitment of UN Member States to abide to their obligations under international human rights law by putting an end to this pattern of human rights violations.
"NPWJ and the NRPTT call on all UN member States to enforce the recommendations highlighted in the report, aiming at tackling these human rights abuses that so far have been too often overlooked. In particular, they should repeal laws that criminalise sexual orientation, enact appropriate comprehensive anti-discrimination laws and ensure accountability for all serious human rights violations perpetrated against LGBTI people.
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UN issues first report on human rights of gay and lesbian people
UN News Center, 15 Dec 2011
The first ever United Nations report on the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people details how around the world people are killed or endure hate-motivated violence, torture, detention, criminalization and discrimination in jobs, health care and education because of their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.
The report, released today by the UN Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva, outlines “a pattern of human rights violations… that demands a response,” and says governments have too often overlooked violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The report – prepared in response to a request from the UN Human Rights Council earlier this year – draws from information included in past UN reporting, official statistics on hate crimes where there are available, and reporting by regional organizations and some non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
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Gay Rights Across the Globe
The Huffington Post, Ilan H Meyer Ph.D, 13 Dec 2011
In her speech on LGBT rights in recognition of International Human Rights Day, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton forcefully stated that "gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights." The speech and other actions by President Obama commit U.S. foreign policy to advancing gay rights internationally.
An important aspect of the speech is the claim that "being gay is not a Western invention." Clinton made this point to counter claims by regimes that defend oppressive policies and laws against gay people as a reflection of local culture. Such regimes reject claims for gay rights as Western interference and explain their anti-gay stand as a valid anti-colonialist assertion of their independence. For example, recently, after Britain said that it would assess the state of gay rights (among other factors) when determining a country's eligibility for foreign aid, President Mugabe of Zimbabwe condemned Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron, saying, according to the Telegraph, that "homosexuality was inconsistent with African and Christian values." Clinton correctly noted that regardless of cultural and religious convictions, countries across the world have advanced gay rights. Notable among these is South Africa, whose constitution protects gay people.
