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Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- Civil society organizations called for more support for women’s organizations on the ground, underlining that women human rights defenders faced daily threats and harassment, and needed greater protection. At the same time, more regulations addressing violence against particular groups of women, such as women belonging to minority groups; migrants; lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons; elderly women; women with disabilities; and widows, were also supported.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- LGBTQI+
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Article 9: Liberty and security of person 2014, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- Liberty of person concerns freedom from confinement of the body, not a general freedom of action. Security of person concerns freedom from injury to the body and the mind, or bodily and mental integrity, as further discussed in paragraph 9 below. Article 9 guarantees those rights to everyone. "Everyone" includes, among others, girls and boys, soldiers, persons with disabilities, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, aliens, refugees and asylum seekers, stateless persons, migrant workers, persons convicted of crime, and persons who have engaged in terrorist activity.
- Body
- Human Rights Committee
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Best practices that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2012, para. 64
- Paragraph text
- Furthermore, States have a negative obligation not to unduly obstruct the exercise of the right to freedom of association. Members of associations should be free to determine their statutes, structure and activities and make decisions without State interference (e.g. legislation in Bulgaria, Slovakia and Slovenia). Associations pursuing objectives and employing means in accordance with international human rights law should benefit from international legal protection. Associations should enjoy, inter alia, the rights to express opinion, disseminate information, engage with the public and advocate before Governments and international bodies for human rights, for the preservation and development of a minority's culture or for changes in law, including changes in the Constitution. The Special Rapporteur recognizes that the formation of associations embracing minority or dissenting views or beliefs may sometimes lead to tensions, but he emphasizes the duty of the State to ensure that everyone can peacefully express their views without any fear. For instance, in Lesotho, the Registrar General registered the first ever lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender organization in the country called Matrix in November 2010 (after numerous delays).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- In some situations, children and youth, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex youth, and women can be vulnerable to violence, requiring access to safe housing and basic services if they are to thrive in the urban context. These groups are often forced into homelessness by sexual and other violence, socioeconomic deprivation, and religious and cultural intolerance within their homes or communities. A sound housing structure does not guarantee safety within housing for these vulnerable groups. When women, children and youth leave their homes, they require both short- and long-term support to secure adequate housing, as they often lack the means to secure housing themselves. In this regard, diverse, culturally appropriate options must be made available.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Certain forms of abuses in health-care settings that may cross a threshold of mistreatment that is tantamount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2013, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- In a 2011 report (A/HRC/19/41), the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights examined discriminatory laws and practices and acts of violence against individuals based on sexual orientation and gender identity in health-care settings. She observed that a pattern of human rights violations emerged that demanded a response. With the adoption in June 2011 of resolution 17/19, the Human Rights Council formally expressed its "grave concern" regarding violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Certain forms of abuses in health-care settings that may cross a threshold of mistreatment that is tantamount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2013, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- In the context of prioritizing informed consent as a critical element of a voluntary counselling, testing and treatment continuum, the Special Rapporteur on the right to health has also observed that special attention should be paid to vulnerable groups. Principles 17 and 18 of the Yogyakarta Principles, for instance, highlight the importance of safeguarding informed consent of sexual minorities. Health-care providers must be cognizant of, and adapt to, the specific needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons (A/64/272, para. 46). The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has indicated that the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights proscribes any discrimination in access to health-care and the underlying determinants of health, as well as to means and entitlements for their procurement, on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Certain forms of abuses in health-care settings that may cross a threshold of mistreatment that is tantamount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2013, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has concluded that homophobic ill-treatment on the part of health professionals is unacceptable and should be proscribed and denounced. There is an abundance of accounts and testimonies of persons being denied medical treatment, subjected to verbal abuse and public humiliation, psychiatric evaluation, a variety of forced procedures such as sterilization, State-sponsored forcible anal examinations for the prosecution of suspected homosexual activities, and invasive virginity examinations conducted by health-care providers, hormone therapy and genital-normalizing surgeries under the guise of so called "reparative therapies". These procedures are rarely medically necessary, can cause scarring, loss of sexual sensation, pain, incontinence and lifelong depression and have also been criticized as being unscientific, potentially harmful and contributing to stigma (A/HRC/14/20, para. 23). The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women expressed concern about lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex women as "victims of abuses and mistreatment by health service providers" (A/HRC/19/41, para. 56).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Certain forms of abuses in health-care settings that may cross a threshold of mistreatment that is tantamount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2013, para. 78
- Paragraph text
- In many countries transgender persons are required to undergo often unwanted sterilization surgeries as a prerequisite to enjoy legal recognition of their preferred gender. In Europe, 29 States require sterilization procedures to recognize the legal gender of transgender persons. In 11 States where there is no legislation regulating legal recognition of gender, enforced sterilization is still practised. As at 2008, in the United States of America, 20 states required a transgender person to undergo "gender-confirming surgery" or "gender reassignment surgery" before being able to change their legal sex. In Canada, only the province of Ontario does not enforce "transsexual surgery" in order to rectify the recorded sex on birth certificates. Some domestic courts have found that not only does enforced surgery result in permanent sterility and irreversible changes to the body, and interfere in family and reproductive life, it also amounts to a severe and irreversible intrusion into a person's physical integrity. In 2012, the Swedish Administrative Court of Appeals ruled that a forced sterilization requirement to intrude into someone's physical integrity could not be seen as voluntary. In 2011, the Constitutional Court in Germany ruled that the requirement of gender reassignment surgery violated the right to physical integrity and self-determination. In 2009, the Austrian Administrative High Court also held that mandatory gender reassignment, as a condition for legal recognition of gender identity, was unlawful. In 2009, the former Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe observed that "[the involuntary sterilization] requirements clearly run counter to the respect for the physical integrity of the person".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- As a starting point, the Special Rapporteur acknowledges that groups most at risk share the experience of discrimination, unequal treatment and harassment. He describes those groups based on their level of marginalization in the exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. Some of the groups that are considered in the present report to be most at risk are persons with disabilities; youth, including children; women; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people; members of minority groups; indigenous peoples; internally displaced persons; and non-nationals, including refugees, asylum seekers and migrant workers.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- LGBTQI+
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 18
- Paragraph text
- [Various international law instruments point to particular principles and measures that States should adopt in order to achieve non-discrimination and equality. For example, States should:] Protect people from homophobic and transphobic violence, prevent torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity and also prohibit discrimination on those grounds, repeal laws criminalizing homosexuality, safeguard the freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly for LGBTI people and recognize the rights of LGBTI people to enjoy or exercise, on an equal basis with others, all human rights and fundamental freedoms (A/HRC/19/41);
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- [International human rights instruments that protect the rights of particular groups specifically recognize directly or indirectly the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association for those groups:] The obligation of States to safeguard the human rights of LGBTI people is well established in international human rights law on the basis of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which, in article 1, unequivocally reads: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights." Moreover, it is enshrined in the jurisprudence and interpretation of State obligations arising from international human rights law by numerous United Nations human rights treaty bodies. In its resolution 17/19, the Human Rights Council expressed concern at acts of violence and discrimination, in all regions of the world, committed against individuals because of their sexual orientation and gender identity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- In addition, sexual orientation and gender identity are increasingly used as a basis for explicit discrimination in the area of assembly rights. In Ukraine, a draft law "on propaganda of homosexuality", which prohibits "propaganda of homosexual relations" aimed at children, was recommended in 2013 for the consideration of the parliament. This draft law defines "propaganda" as any public action to spread information on same-sex relations, including peaceful assemblies and educational courses. In August 2012, a Russian court upheld a Moscow city council ban on gay pride parades, prohibiting such assemblies for the next 100 years. In early 2014, the President of Nigeria signed the Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act, which bans gay marriage and also makes it an offence to register, operate, participate in or support gay clubs, societies, organizations, processions or meetings, or to make a public display of a same-sex amorous relationship, directly or indirectly. An offence is punishable by a prison term of 10 years. The provision effectively bans any public or private meeting on the subject of sexual orientation and gender identity. In Uganda, the President signed a new anti-homosexuality bill into law in February 2014. This law imposes a sentence of life imprisonment for homosexuality and same-sex marriage and five to seven years of imprisonment for the "promotion" of homosexuality, which directly targets and threatens the work of LGBTI organizations and human rights defenders. In Kuwait, the new criminal offence of "imitating the opposite sex" directly targets and criminalizes transgender people and anyone seen as not conforming to gender norms. It has resulted in harassment, arbitrary arrest and detention, abuse, torture and sexual assault of transgender people. Expressing its concern, the Human Rights Committee has recommended that the offence be repealed (CCPR/C/KWT/CO/2, para. 30).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Some of the most prominent examples include "public morality" laws that have been used selectively against those promoting LGBTI rights. In June 2013, the President of the Russian Federation signed legislation banning "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" among minors. There is no legal definition in the Russian law of what constitutes non-traditional sexual relations, but it is widely acknowledged to be code for homosexual relations. While legislators have argued that the main purpose of the law is to protect children, the Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed concern at the law and recommended its repeal, as it found that it encouraged the stigmatization and discrimination of LGBTI children and the targeting and persecution of the LGBTI community (CRC/C/RUS/CO/4-5, para. 25).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur strongly condemns the recent wave of laws, regulations and practices in some parts of the world designed to silence, intimidate and harass those who promote the human rights of LGBTI people through public assemblies. The aforementioned law in the Russian Federation makes "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations", which includes gay pride events or any assembly supporting LGBTI rights, punishable by administrative fines of up to 5,000 roubles for citizens and up to 100,000 roubles for foreigners and subjects the latter to deportation. Public assemblies are at the heart of an active civil society and a functioning democracy. Tolerance of others, pluralism and broadmindedness must be harnessed. As stated previously, it is not necessary to agree with what people do, but as long as it is done peacefully, and does not incite violence and hatred, it should be allowed.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- Moreover, arbitrary differences in the policing of peaceful assemblies are a concern in some Member States. In 2012, for example, the Minister for Ethics and Integrity of Uganda allegedly intervened to disrupt two private civil society workshops: one on the monitoring of human rights violations, and another on the human rights of LGBTI people. Participants say that both workshops were targeted because they addressed the rights of LGBTI people.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 46
- Paragraph text
- In other cases, inaction by authorities may prevent some groups from exercising their right to freedom of peaceful assembly. The Special Rapporteur has received numerous reports from India regarding the disruption of public assemblies of Dalit individuals - members of the country's traditional "untouchable" caste. This includes one case in 2009 in which members of another caste obstructed a funeral procession and beat members of the Dalit community. Police reportedly failed to intervene, despite being present. In Egypt, peaceful female demonstrators were sexually assaulted repeatedly in Tahir Square, largely due to the inaction of law enforcement authorities. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, unidentified individuals violently disrupted LGBTI events in 2008 and 2014. In both cases, the police failed to provide protection to the organizers and participants. In several countries, stigmatization and counter-demonstrations against LGBTI pride parades and marches have also dissuaded organizers from holding such events.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 55
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur emphasizes that the right to freedom of association applies equally to associations that are not registered (A/HRC/20/27, para. 96). He endorses as best practice a voluntary registration regime that permits unregistered associations to operate. The Special Rapporteur notes with approval the recent ruling by a magistrate's court in Zimbabwe, quashing charges of running an unregistered organization preferred against a member of the Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe association.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 64
- Paragraph text
- In addition to legislation that restricts the right to the freedom of assembly of LGBTI people through discriminatory law that prohibits "propaganda" or the "promotion" of homosexuality, some legislation also specifically prohibits the formation, running, participation in or support of organizations that advocate for the protection of the human rights of LGBTI people. This is the case of the above-mentioned Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act in Nigeria. The Special Rapporteur highlights that the Human Rights Committee has clarified that any limitations to rights protected by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, when permitted by the Covenant, may not be imposed for discriminatory purposes or applied in a discriminatory manner. Therefore, provisions restricting or prohibiting the right to freedom of association of a specific group on discriminatory grounds, such as sexual orientation or gender identity, is not permitted under the Covenant and must be reviewed with a view to repeal.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Girls deprived of their liberty are at a heightened risk of sexual violence, sexual exploitation and underage pregnancies while in detention. The risk of sexual abuse is greater when male guards supervise girls in detention. Girls deprived of their liberty have different needs not only to those of adults but also of boys. Girls in detention are often not only children but also carers, either as mothers or as siblings, and have specific health, hygiene and sanitary needs. Across the globe, girls are rarely kept separately from women in pretrial and post-conviction settings (see A/HRC/16/52/Add.3, para. 54). Similarly, the Special Rapporteur notes that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children are at a heightened risk.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 86g
- Paragraph text
- [With regard to conditions during detention, the Special Rapporteur calls upon all States:] To respond to the specific needs of groups of children that are even more vulnerable to ill-treatment or torture, such as girls, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children, and children with disabilities;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children in street situations 2017, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Causes, prevalence and experiences of children in street situations differ within and between States. Inequalities based on economic status, race and gender are among the structural causes of the emergence and exclusion of children in street situations. These are exacerbated by material poverty, inadequate social protection, poorly targeted investment, corruption and fiscal (tax and expenditure) policies that reduce or eliminate the ability of poorer people to move out of poverty. Abrupt destabilization, caused by conflict, famine, epidemic, natural disaster or forced eviction, or events leading to displacement or forced migration, further compound the effects of structural causes. Other causes include: violence, abuse, exploitation and neglect at home or in care or educational (including religious) institutions; the death of caregivers; child relinquishment (including through HIV/AIDS); unemployment of caregivers; precarious families; family breakdown; polygamy; exclusion from education; substance abuse and mental ill-health (of children or families); intolerance and discrimination, including against children with disabilities, children accused of witchcraft, former child soldiers rejected by families and children cast out from families as a result of questioning their sexuality or identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex or asexual; and families’ inability to accept children’s resistance to harmful practices, such as child marriage and female genital mutilation.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Movement
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Commissions of inquiry 2012, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- Where human rights violations have had a distinct ethnic, racial, or religious dimension, it is important to include people who fully understand the plight of affected communities. Under all circumstances careful attention should be paid to the inclusion of women in the composition of the commission. Of additional value is the inclusion of individuals with a gender perspective to better understand the specific ways in which vulnerable persons, including, women, children, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, persons with disabilities and persons belonging to a minority or indigenous group suffer from gross violations, including torture and other forms of ill-treatment and how they affect their communities. Geographic and cross-cultural balance in a commission is also of the greatest importance, as long as the standards of expertise and professionalism are not diminished for the sake of political balance.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Common violations of the human rights to water and sanitation 2014, para. 64
- Paragraph text
- Women and girls are frequently subjected to unacceptable risks of violence, including sexual violence, in accessing water and sanitation facilities. Their right to personal security may be violated by failures to provide adequate protection from violence, including through appropriate design and placement of facilities with the participation of women. Many other groups and individuals such as Dalits and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex individuals also face violence in accessing water and sanitation, often linked to deeply entrenched stigmatization.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Violence
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Comprehensive, rights-based and child-centred care, recovery and reintegration programmes 2015, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Research shows that girls account for the majority of documented victims of sexual exploitation. However, the fact that boys are also victims cannot be disregarded. Similarly, children who identify as transgender are extremely vulnerable to sexual exploitation. In the United States of America, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex youth are disproportionately represented in runaway and homeless youth programmes and child welfare systems and 42 per cent of them have been sexually exploited. A 2006 study in Cambodia found that 80 per cent of interviewed victims of street-based sexual exploitation were male. In Taiwan Province of China, the number of boys being prostituted discovered through social networking sites peaked in 2008. In Ethiopia, a study revealed that male children are specifically targeted for prostitution on the basis of the belief that anal intercourse is less likely to transmit HIV/AIDS. A recent study in the United Kingdom found that one third of children accessing specialist sexual exploitation services were male.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Youth
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Comprehensive, rights-based and child-centred care, recovery and reintegration programmes 2015, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Gender-based discrimination and inequalities also play a large role in the propagation of sexual exploitation of children, in particular girls and children who identify as transgender. Sexual exploitation of girls is often rooted in patriarchal structures that promote male sexual domination and do not condemn the commercialization of girls and women. Culturally imposed feminine gender stereotypes also contribute to sexual exploitation of women and girls by placing them in the role of serving males, negating their ability to make decisions regarding their own sexual and reproductive life and making them prime targets for sexual violence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Comprehensive, rights-based and child-centred care, recovery and reintegration programmes 2015, para. 68
- Paragraph text
- Care, recovery and reintegration programmes must incorporate a gender perspective, taking into account the different needs and opportunities of boys, girls and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children. While emphasis is often placed on female child victims, there is a growing need for assistance and protection of boys and children who identify as transgender and therefore also a need to establish specialized care, recovery and reintegration programmes for those children. For instance, in the United States, the Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime supports the development of specialized services for boys and men as well as programmes for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons to ensure that their needs are met and that they are identified as victims.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Contemporary challenges to freedom of expression 2016, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- In recent years, a number of Governments have adopted laws that explicitly attack expression on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. For instance, the Government of Kyrgyzstan adopted a law that criminalizes the dissemination of information relating to "non-traditional" sexual relationships. Uganda has criminalized the "promotion" of homosexuality, while the Russian Federation has banned the "propaganda of homosexuality" at the federal level across the country. In Zambia, a human rights advocate not only faced undue delays when trying to register an NGO for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons and sex workers, but also was charged with "soliciting for immoral purposes" when he urged greater access to health care for sex workers and sexual minorities. In some cases, individuals and organizations involved in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-related activism or expression even face significant threats of physical violence. In Honduras, for example, there has been a systematic lack of accountability for advocates of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights who have been murdered, kidnapped or assaulted. In an important step, the Human Rights Council, reflecting on the increasing pressure on and violence and discrimination against individuals on the basis of their sexual orientation, established a mandate for an independent expert to combat such discrimination and violence (see Council resolution 32/2).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Continuum of violence against women from the home to the transnational sphere: the challenges of effective redress 2011, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- The mandate has identified rape/sexual assault, sexual harassment, violence within institutions, trafficking, forced prostitution, violence against women migrant workers, and pornography as forms of violence against women occurring in the community. Stalking, violence against lesbians, bisexuals and transgender persons, bride-kidnapping, femicide (including killings in connection to witchcraft and dowry) are other manifestations of violence against women in this sphere.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Continuum of violence against women from the home to the transnational sphere: the challenges of effective redress 2011, para. 36
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- The Special Rapporteur is concerned at widespread discrimination and violence suffered by women as a result of their sexual orientation and gender identity. The visit to Kyrgyzstan indicated a high level of societal homophobia, discrimination and violence against lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. Interlocutors shared accounts of incidents of such violence, including brutal gang rapes, "curative" rapes and family violence owing to their sexual identity and gender identity. One study indicated that 23 per cent of lesbian and bisexual women have had forced sexual contacts and 56 per cent have had their families try to force them to change their sexual identity or orientation. A similar pattern was found during the visit to El Salvador, where murders had increased towards homosexuals, bisexuals, transgender and intersex communities from 4 in 2003 to at least 12 in 2009. Accounts of widespread discrimination and violence, including gang rapes and family violence, were shared with the Special Rapporteur.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Criminalisation of sexual and reproductive health 2011, para. 59
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- Laws restricting information about sexual and reproductive health and which censor discussions of homosexuality in the classroom fuel stigma and discrimination of vulnerable minorities. For example, laws and policies that promote abstinence-only education reduce sexual education to images and stereotypes of heteronormativity, given their focus on procreation; some of these programmes even contain explicitly discriminatory content on gender and sexual orientation. In certain instances, teachers have been suspended or threatened with lawsuits for engaging in discussions on "inappropriate" sexual matters with their students when discussing sexual and reproductive health issues in the classroom. In other cases, pursuant to abstinence-only and anti-obscenity policies, school districts, courts and legislators have prohibited civil society organizations from meeting in public schools. Such laws and policies perpetuate false and negative stereotypes concerning sexuality, alienate students of different sexual orientations and prevent students from making fully informed decisions regarding their sexual and reproductive health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2011
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