A/79/151 for political benefit. 138 LGBT persons may be targeted specifically in campaign rhetoric, or hostility may be expressed in more general xenophobic terms. A common feature of xenophobia is to create “the other” as a threat to the dominant paradigm. Discrimination and hostility are exacerbated when an LGBT individual is additionally targeted on the basis of other characteristics, such as race or religious beliefs, 139 or as a migrant. 140 VIII. Conduct of campaign 44. Incitement to violence against LGBT persons is of greatest concern during election campaigns, when political rhetoric is amplified. An estimated 51 States Members of the United Nations explicitly prohibit incitement to hatred, violence or discrimination based on sexual orientation. 141 The dynamics of political campaigning may make it more difficult to enforce hate speech regulations, as such enforcement will often rely on the careful deliberation of independent courts and legal processes, which cannot apply such regulations quickly and effectively during elections. 45. Bias with regard to sexual orientation or gender identity can be an aggravating factor in sentencing in jurisdictions where such a provision exists. Specific provisions may apply to transgressions committed by public servants. Such regulations exist, f or example, in Angola, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Colombia, Honduras, Mongolia and Peru, as well as across the European Union. These provisions recognize sexual orientation (and, more rarely, gender identity) as areas of concern for targeted discrimination and can have a deterrent effect on violence. These legal provisions also provide grounds for more in-depth and comprehensive training of law enforcement and justice sector officials entrusted with ensuring the safety of voters and candidates. 46. Violence has a particularly chilling effect on political participation. 142 In contexts where authorities are reluctant to acknowledge or prosecute hate crimes, LGBT people may face a reality in which hate crimes are committed with impunity. In electoral contexts, delayed responses by authorities to hate speech complaints during political campaigns also contribute to a sense of impunity for such transgressions and contribute to a climate of fear. 143 In many contexts, LGBT activists perceive law enforcement agencies as a source of harassment or threat, rather than protection, mainly as a result of a history of persecution and harassment by police and security forces. 144 Similarly, any restrictions on the rights of LGBT persons through legislation have a negative effect on political participation by creating a situation of legal precarity and social insecurity by designating LGBT persons as second -class citizens. 145 47. Legal frameworks increasingly address the issue of gender-based political violence, but often do so with a specific focus on women, without attending to or differentiating between their experience and that of trans women or lesbians. Despite increasing global attention to gender violence and persecution as applying gender stereotypes to many differently gendered persons, presumptions under existing __________________ 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 24-12964 See A/HRC/26/30 and submission by Cattrachas Lesbian Network, p. 2. Submission by VoteLGBT, p. 9. Submission by Observatorio Latinoamericano y del Caribe de los Derechos Políticos y Electorales de las Personas Trans, p. 10. https://database.ilga.org/incitement-violence-lgbti. See European Union Election Observation Mission, “Honduras: final report – general elections 2017”. Submission by Cattrachas Lesbian Network, p. 3. Submission by the GLIDE Initiative, p. 8. Submissions by FrontlineAids, p. 4; and Observatorio Latinoamericano y del Caribe de los Derechos Políticos y Electorales de las Personas Trans, p. 2. 17/25