Joint NHRI statement

Ending acts of violence and related human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity

Item 8: General Debate
22 March 2011

Mr. President,

This is a joint statement on behalf of the Equality and Human Rights Commission of Great Britain, the Scottish Human Rights Commission, the New Zealand Human Rights Commission, the National Consultative Commission on Human Rights of France, the Canadian Human Rights Commission, the Procuraduria para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos de Nicaragua, the Defensoria del Pueblo of Ecuador, the German Institute for Human Rights, the Comite Senegalais des Droits de l’Homme, the National Commission on Human Rights of Greece, the Procuraduria de los Derechos Humanos de Guatemala, the Australian Human Rights Commission, the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, the Danish Institute for Human Rights, the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines and the South African Human Rights Commission. The Ombudsperson Institution of Kosovo and the Nigerian Human Rights Commission also support this statement.

Mr. President

The Vienna Declaration and Program of Action reaffirms the principle of equality and non-discrimination.

As National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) we are charged with the protection and promotion of human rights for all, without prejudice or discrimination. We are therefore pleased to submit this statement in strong support of the Joint statement on ending acts of violence and related human rights violations based on sexual orientation & gender identity supported by more than 80 States.

This is the first statement on this issue at the Human Rights Council since the joint statement presented in 2006, and since then we have seen continued evidence in every region of acts of violence and related human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity including killings, rape, torture and criminal sanctions.

As the UN Secretary General reminded us in his address to the Council at its Special Sitting of 25 January 2011: the Universal Declaration guarantees all human beings their basic rights without exception. When individuals are attacked, abused or imprisoned because of their sexual orientation or gender identity, the international community has an obligation to respond.

We join with States and NGOs in commending the attention paid to these issues by international human rights mechanisms including relevant Special Procedures and treaty bodies and we welcome continued attention to human rights issues related to sexual orientation and gender identity within the context of the Universal Periodic Review. We also encourage the Human Rights Council to play its part in accordance with its mandate and encourage the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to address human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. To this end we request that at its next session the Council hold a special panel discussion on the promotion and protection of human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people.

NHRIs are established in societies that represent the diversity of the world’s religious and cultural systems. In spite of our differences we are unanimous in condemning human rights violations whenever and wherever and on whatever basis they occur. We face challenges in our work because of the traditions of our cultures, including traditions that condemn same sex conduct and marginalize LGBTI people, but we affirm the higher and nobler values of all human cultures, values that find their expression in universal human rights.

NHRIs established in accordance with the Paris Principles are important institutions for addressing the violence and human rights violations – such as laws criminalizing same sex conduct between consenting adults and such gross violations as murder, rape, torture, arbitrary detention and discrimination in education, health care and employment – that have been documented. NHRIs can use their functions and powers – including investigating complaints, reviewing laws and policies, holding national inquiries and public education – to better protect and promote the rights of LGBTI people. As NHRIs we renew our commitment to promote and protect human rights for all free from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.