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.”
In response to the request from the President of the General Assembly (PGA) for contributions to the High-Level Event on the role of women, the young and civil society, the SRI prepared a submission focusing on women and young peoples’ sexual and reproductive rights. The submission calls for the Post-2015 development framework to integrate a human rights-based approach.
In 2013, in response to the request from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for submissions on ‘how a better understanding and appreciation of traditional values of dignity, freedom and responsibility could contribute to the promotion and protection of human rights,’ the SRI submitted a report focusing on the many practices and norms that discriminate against women and other groups of people.
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights recently launched a new publication entitled “Reclaiming and Redefining Rights – ICPD+20: Status of sexual and reproductive rights in Middle East and North Africa.” The publication progress achieved and challenges remaining in the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), since 1994 in the MENA region. The report is contextualized within recent and ongoing events including the Arab Spring, Governmental positions during recent global conferences, among other events.