News

CREA is happy to announce the release of its new publication: Achieving Transformative Feminist Leadership: A Toolkit for Organisations and Movements.

The Toolkit aims to help individuals and organisations dedicated to advancing a feminist social change agenda–an agenda based on the belief that all development and social justice must be rooted in gender and social equality. The Toolkit is part of CREA’s continuous endeavour to strengthen feminist leadership of women and grassroots organisations, seeking to further the transformative goals of the feminist movement.

The 19th session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) was held at the Human Rights Council (HRC) from April 28 – May 9 2014.

14 countries were reviewed during UPR 19 including: Albania, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Côte d’Ivoire, Costa Rica, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Dominica, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Nicaragua, Norway, Portugal and Qatar. The outcome reports of these reviews will be adopted during the 27th session of the HRC session in September 2014.

Statement by the ASEAN SOGIE Caucus (ASC):

The ASEAN SOGIE Caucus (ASC) condemns the regressive and inhuman revision of the penal code of Brunei Darussalam that introduces stoning to death as a specific method of execution for same sexual activities. The ASC is somewhat comforted by the postponement of the implementation of the new code. However, the ASC maintains its position on the introduction of the law, albeit the delay.

A side event entitled “Intersectionality and Impunity: locating Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity in the Human Rights Discourse” took place on Wednesday 19 March 2014. The event was co-sponsored by, alphabetically, Coalition of SOGI Malaysia, ICARH, ILGA, ISHR, JSA Consulting Group and the Sexual Rights Initiative (SRI). Panelists included human rights defenders from India, Malaysia, Nigeria and Switzerland as well as a representative of OHCHR; including the SRI’s Sunita Kujur (representing CREA).

During the 47th session of the UN Commission on Population and Development (CPD), individuals with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities, and their allies, came together to voice concerns regarding ongoing violations of the human rights of individuals with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions.

World leaders on women’s reproductive rights draft ‘Airlie Declaration on safe legal abortion’

The 25th session of the UN Human Rights Council took place from March 3 – 28 2014. The first week of the four-week session comprised of a ‘High-level segment’ during which high-level dignitaries addressed the Council. Below is a round-up of sexual rights-related news from the 25th session of the Council.

Highlights

SRI and WILPF respond to the ‘protection of the family’ initiative

HRC25: SRI Oral statements

During the 25th session of the UN Human Rights Council, the Sexual Rights Initiative (SRI) and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) coordinated a response the “protection of the family” joint statement initiated during the session.

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), at its recently concluded session, issued a statement on sexual and reproductive health and rights, which is its contribution to the ICPD@20 review process. The Committee reminds us that it “has observed that failure of a State party to provide services and the criminalisation of some services that only women require is a violation of women’s reproductive rights and constitutes discrimination against them.” It States that “the provision of, inter alia, safe abortion and post abortion care; maternity care; timely diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases (including HIV), breast and reproductive cancers, and infertility; as well as access to accurate and comprehensive information about sexuality and reproduction, are all part of the right to sexual and reproductive health” and that “every State can and should do more to ensure the full respect, protection and fulfilment of sexual and reproductive rights, in line with human rights obligations.”