Author: Isabel Marler

Culture of Love, a UN Free & Equal campaign

Just ahead of the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia & Biphobia the UN Human Rights Office today launched a new UN Free & Equal mini-campaign that explores the role that culture and tradition play in the lives of lesbian, gay, bi, trans and intersex people around the world.

Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community

Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Culture and tradition are profound parts of our lives. They allow us to come together to mark life’s milestones, and celebrate our heritage and the people we love. For many, they provide a sense of home, of history and identity.

Culture and tradition belong to everyone. Each of us gets to interpret, adapt and practice the beliefs, customs and rituals that are meaningful to us as individuals. These are basic cultural rights – guaranteed to everyone without discrimination.

Sadly, some people see the inclusion of lesbian, gay, bi, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people as a threat to their cultural values. They may try, wrongly, to rationalize violence and discrimination as a way of protecting their beliefs in the name of culture and tradition. No matter how diverse people’s beliefs and values, culture and tradition are not a license to discriminate or an excuse for violence.

Culture and tradition are not fixed: they change over time and are viewed and interpreted differently within societies. There are traditions of hate and repression, just as there are traditions of equality and justice. It’s up to each of us to decide for ourselves which ones to carry on.

UN Free & Equal published three videos as part of the campaign. Tradition, Culture and Family can be watched from the campaign website.

  • In “Tradition”, a young man in Mumbai brings his boyfriend to a family celebration of the Festival of Holi.
  • In “Culture”, a genderqueer youngster in Britain joins their father at a soccer match and basks in the comradery that goes with supporting the local team.
  • In “Family”, Chinese parents shake off their initial hesitation and include their daughter’s same sex partner in their traditional Lunar New Year celebrations.

 

What is a family? UN Women video

UN Women has published a video titled “What is a family?” to promote the diversity of different forms of families worldwide.

Showing symbols of different families, the video says that “families come in many forms” and “it’s time for policies to recognize their diversity”.

Watch the full video from UN Women’s Twitter Account.

OURs - News piece

Female clerics declare fatwa on child marriage in Indonesia

Female clerics on Thursday issued an unprecedented fatwa against child marriage in Indonesia in a bid to stop young girls becoming brides in the world’s most populous Muslim country.

The fatwa – which is influential among Muslims but not legally binding – came at the end of an extraordinary three-day conference of female Islamic clerics: a rare example of women assuming a lead role in religious affairs in this mostly-Muslim country.

“Maternal mortality is very high in Indonesia. We – as female clerics – can play a role on the issue of child marriage,” conference organiser Ninik Rahayu told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

“Female clerics know the issues and obstacles women face, we can take action and not just wait for the government to protect these children,” she said by phone from Cirebon in the West Java province, where the congress was held.

Indonesia has one of the worst records for under-age marriage – its high number of child brides puts it among the top 10 countries worldwide – and it is common for girls to marry before they turn 18.

Thursday’s fatwa, or religious edict, called underage marriage “harmful” and said its prevention was mandatory.

Read the full story from the Thomas Reuters Foundation.

Holding the Line: Reflections from the 61st Commission on the Status of Women

Given the diversity of state positions and civil society organizations present at the CSW in the current era, we always anticipate that the CSW will be a challenging space in which to defend or advance the rights of lesbian, bisexual, trans and intersex  persons (LBTI).

By Erin Aylward

While this year’s CSW saw some important strategies and successes in holding the line, we also witnessed some concerning developments that underscore the very real need for human rights organizations to prevent backsliding on key issues and strategies for NGO-engagement.

Let’s start with the Agreed Conclusions: the “meat and potatoes” of each year’s CSW. Because the Agreed Conclusions are agreed upon by consensus, LBTI rights have yet to ever be explicitly mentioned or acknowledged in this outcome document, and we do not anticipate that this will happen anytime soon. From the perspective of organizations focused on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC) issues, then, “success” during the CSW political negotiations is often framed in two ways:

  1. fighting off hostile language – often, though not exclusively put forward by the Russian Federation – on the family, traditional values, and state sovereignty, and
  2. fighting for broad, inclusive language that could be interpreted to include SOGIESC issues, even if they are not explicitly mentioned.

According to these metrics, the final version of the Agreed Conclusions can largely be considered a success.

However, the author is alarmed by three main anti-rights trends at the CSW: pink-washing at the CSW, the shrinking space for civil society actors and the rise of the religious right within the CSW.

Read the full article from ARC International.

Conservatism abets failure to reach consensus on CPD50 resolution – ARROW’s response

The 50th Session of Commission on Population and Development (CPD) on the theme, “Changing Population Age Structures and Sustainable Development”, took place from 3-7 April, 2017 at UN Headquarters in New York. After weeks of strenuous negotiations, the session ended without an outcome document and with a summary of deliberations by the Chair.

The decision was made after weeks of informal and formal negotiations and a draft text which was put forward by the Chair. However, there were consistent disagreements on several issues including sexual and reproductive health and rights, families, and comprehensive sexuality education. The draft text emphasised that population and development, gender equality and women’s empowerment, and the promotion and protection of the full enjoyment of all human rights, especially sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, are essential for sustainable development. It also reaffirmed to strive to provide young people with a nurturing environment for the full realisation of their rights and capabilities and to help member states to benefit the demographic dividend by investing in policies and programmes that ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and quality education.

However, after an exchange between the representatives of multiple regional blocs, including US, there was no consensus on the draft which was withdrawn by the Chair. Instead of a resolution, the session ended with a Chair’s summary.

We express our deep regrets on the lack of an outcome document for the 50th Session of CPD. The International Conference on Population and Development Programme of Action (ICPD PoA) remains the most comprehensive negotiated action document on many aspects of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and reproductive rights (RR). At its 20-year review, all governments agreed that the agenda should be continued until it is fully achieved, yet many member states were disputing over references to SRH and RR. These non-negotiable population issues are inalienably people’s rights. And the Commission’s failure to reach agreement on these issues – which should be based solely on scientific evidence – casts a shadow on future success of intergovernmental negotiations. It was also disappointing to note that there were huge gaps between what member states were implementing at national level and what they were advocating for at UN; the country statements were far from the actual realities and programmes and development needs at grassroots level.

We hope subsequent CPD sessions uphold the ICPD PoA and further the agenda by protecting and fulfilling universal access to SRHR, including full range of SRH information and services, access to full range of safe, effective and affordable contraceptive services, safe and legal abortion services, comprehensive sexuality education and youth friendly health services for young people, and gender equality and empowerment of women and girls, SOGI, taking into account the lived realities of people and the emerging population and development priorities.

ARROW is deeply committed to continuing to work towards a just, equal, and equitable world together with member states, UN agencies, and civil society organisations.

ARROW’s response to the absence of an outcome document from the 50th Session of Commission on Population and Development (CPD). See ARROW’s oral statement during the event here.

Indonesia: gay men facing 100 lashes for having sex

The case could become the first time Aceh’s sharia law has been enforced against homosexuality.

Two gay Indonesian men have been arrested and face 100 lashes in a case that is drawing international attention to the enforcement of controversial new Islamic bylaws in the semi-autonomous Aceh province.

Mobile phone footage, showing vigilantes slapping one of the young men as he sits naked on the ground awaiting arrest by local sharia police, has been shared on social media in the world’s largest Muslim-majority country.

The sentence has already been meted out for crimes such as adultery, but it is believed this would be the first time Aceh’s new statutes concerning religion and morality could be enforced against homosexuality.

Aceh is the only region in Indonesia, a plural democracy, which allows local authorities to maintain parallel laws and police forces based on religious interpretations.

The province, sitting on the northern tip of Sumatra island and holding about 2% of Indonesia’s population of 250 million, was granted this special status in 2001 as a compromise with historical separatist movements.

The anti-gay law was passed in 2014 and Human Rights Watch says these new statutes and punishments violate human rights treaties to which Indonesia is a party, and has asked president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to intervene.

“The agreement which granted Aceh the legitimate right to form its own local bylaws did not allow them to persecute people for their religion or sexuality,” said Andreas Harsono, a researcher with Human Rights Watch in Indonesia. “Across Indonesia today, we are seeing rising discrimination in the name of Islam, including against women and LGBT community”

In October, the moderate Jokowi spoke out against increased abuse directed at LGBT persons in Indonesia, and said police must act to defend them.

“However, Jokowi has not backed up that statement with action,” said a statement issued by Human Rights Watch on 9 April.

The two men, reportedly aged 20 and 24, were caught on 28 March by unknown men who forcibly entered a home. Local bylaws allow this kind of citizen’s arrest and the men are now being held by sharia police.

In the video, one of the men appears distressed and confused. “Brother, please, help me, help me. We are caught.” he says into a mobile phone.

Read the full article from the Guardian.

Orthodox Church debate over women deacons moves one step closer to reality

The prospect of women being ordained as deacons may now be a giant step closer to reality, since the Patriarch of Alexandria, who presides over the entire Orthodox Church in Africa, followed up on his 2016 decision to reintroduce women deacons and last month appointed six nuns to be subdeaconesses within the church.

In a symbolic ceremony, the patriarch blessed the women and used other religious symbols to effectively restore women’s ordination within Orthodoxy. The move follows years of discussions within different branches of Orthodoxy on whether to reinstitute women deacons, and it comes at a time of growing interest around the issue within the Greek Orthodox Church, the largest Orthodox denomination in the U.S.

James Skedros, dean of Holy Cross seminary and professor of Orthodox history, believes appointing female deacons will have a positive impact by showing people that “there are plenty of ministries in the church that women can and should participate in.”

“When we see that happening to a woman, even if it’s in Alexandria, that’s a powerful image for us Orthodox.”

While women in several Protestant denominations have succeeded in becoming ordained ministers, their sisters in Eastern Orthodox Christianity and the Roman Catholic Church continue to push for recognition and acceptance. While the Orthodox Church says its theology has not changed in centuries, the role of women members is now in flux.

Marilyn Rouvelas, chair of Orthodox Deacons, a women’s ordination ministry in Virginia, said deaconesses are desperately needed in the U.S.

“It’s hard for a priest to serve an entire community,” said Rouvelas. “They’re already overworked.”

But each branch of Orthodoxy doesn’t necessarily recognize that need. Rouvelas has monitored and contributed to the discussions since 1992. She said women couldn’t be ordained unless the synod of bishops agrees to it.

“It’s sort of like whack-a-mole,” Rouvelas said with a laugh. “We get going with the issue, and they keep whacking us down.”

Even though discussions seem to be at an impasse, Kyriaki Karidoyanes FitzGerald, a professor at Holy Cross who has worked her whole life for women being ordained, added: “The critical mass is coming. We’re not going back.”

Read the full article from Religious News Service.

Sri Lankan Muslim Clerics Say Women Are Not Equal To Men, Defend Marriage Before Puberty

In an alarming submission made to several parliamentarians and other conservative groups with regard to proposed amendments to the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act, the All Ceylon Jamiyathul Ulama (ACJU) has said that they agree with the Hadith “No people will ever prosper who appoint a woman in charge of their affairs” and therefore a woman isn’t worthy of being appointed a Qazi (judge).

The ACJU is the main body of theologians of Muslims in Sri Lanka. In a brief document dated March 2017 of which the Colombo Telegraph possesses a copy, the clerics have said that therefore they oppose the appointing of female judges (Qazis).

The Hadiths, which was compiled at least 230 years after the death of the Prophet quotes Muhammad the Prophet of Islam as making the statement, the veracity of which has been questioned throughout the Islamic intellectual tradition.

The submission also includes the fact of the marriage of the Prophet to Aisha, of which the contract of marriage was said to have taken place when she was 6 years of age.

It uses the story as a justification for the marriage of girls who have not attained puberty.

Again quoting a Hadith the document says “A father giving in marriage his daughter before attaining puberty is possible and this is the evidence that Abu Bakr (RA) gave Aisha (RA) on marriage to the Prophet (PBUH) when she was 6”.

However, the narration is also a construct of later day scholars although documented in Bukhari, one of the most voluminous of the compilers and considered to be a Sahih (truthful) Hadith.

There has been no other evidence to the effect that Aisha was in fact 6 and that the marriage was consummated when she was 9 except for Hadith, which according to academics was compilation though hearsay. Muhammad is said to have been 53 years at the time.

The ACJU accordingly has made a sweeping conclusion saying they are against any female judge sitting in as a Qazi and that her edicts will be not binding as per the Sharia and will therefore be null and void. Instead the ACJU has sought to confine the female in a consultative capacity.

Adding insult to injury, the ACJU has justified its view using the same justification of Saudi Arabia- saying “It is to protect the rights, honour and modesty of women”.

The head cleric of the ACJU Mufthi Rizwe was yesterday on record that the MMDA is “perfect in the present state”.

Several organizations including Muslim led civil society groups and the media have highlighted and documented many issues of rural Muslim women suffering as a result of the MMDA, including many instances of child marriage.

Read the full article from the Colombo Telegraph.

United Nations calls on Government to take direct action after Italy fails to apply law 194

The United Nations Human Rights Committee has expressed serious concerns about the difficulties women face across Italy in accessing legal abortion services as a result of the Italian authorities’ failures to address serious gaps in services due to the high number of health care professionals denying care across the country.

The report released today found that the Italian government’s failure to ensure adequate availability of abortion care violates women’s human rights and compels many women to seek clandestine abortions.

The United Nations Human Rights Committee urged the Italian Government to take the necessary measures to guarantee unimpeded and timely access to legal abortion services across the entire country to all women seeking these services.

Among the necessary measures, the Italian government must create an effective referral system for women who are refused abortion care by medical professionals

“This requires establishing protocols and guidelines ensuring that hospitals that do not provide abortion services can guarantee that patients receive them at other health facilities,” explains Irene Donadio, from IPPF EN.

“This outcome is an important result for women in Italy. For a long time, too many women in Italy were maltreated when they requested the provision of a service guaranteed by law. After the Council of Europe, the United Nations demanded respect for the rights and dignity of women. Now the Italian government must take appropriate measures.”

LAIGA, Vita di Donna, the International Planned Parenthood Federation European Network (IPPF EN) and the Center for Reproductive Rights submitted a report to the United Nations Human Rights Committee highlighting Italy’s breaches of its human rights obligations to guarantee women’s access to legal abortion services.

Dr Silvana Agatone, gynaecologist and president of LAIGA, said: “If the Italian government follows the recommendations as it must, women will finally be guaranteed that when hospitals do not provide the service, there is a well-documented path to another service provider in a short time. It is a step forward!”

Katrine Thomasen, Senior Legal Advisor at the Center for Reproductive Rights added: “Women in Italy face serious risks to their health and wellbeing as a result of Italian authorities’ failures to guarantee access to quality reproductive health services. Today the Human Rights Committee made it clear that the Italian government cannot ignore its human rights obligations and must guarantee women’s access to legal abortion services. It’s time the government prioritizes women’s health and works swiftly to implement measures that give women timely access to the full range of reproductive health services, including legal abortion.”

Read the full statement from the International Planned Parenthood Federation European Network.

How a Folk Saint of Death Took Off Among Transgender Women in Mexico

Violence against transgender women is common in Mexico, mostly because employment discrimination forces many to turn to sex work for money. Santa Muerte, the skeleton folk saint with her female form and association with death, is particularly appealing to transgender sex workers, who face the persistent threat of violent clients and transphobic hatred.

Unlike official church figures such as Our Lady of Guadalupe whose images are ethereal, Santa Muerte appeals to those with practical problems and passions living on the country’s margins. Devotees ask her for protection, even when sex work is their only occupation.

“The majority of us believe in Santa Muerte,” said Betzy Ballesteros, a 26-year-old transgender sex worker. “She’s a God to us. I ask her to shield me from danger and provide work and clients.”

The cult of Santa Muerte is an example of religious syncretism, with roots in European Catholicism and Aztec beliefs.

Condemned as satanic by the Catholic Church and frequently portrayed as a narco-cult in the media, worship of Santa Muerte is nevertheless a fast-growing new religious movement in the Americas, according to Andrew Chesnut, professor of religious studies at Virginia Commonwealth University and the author of “Devoted to Death: Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint.”

“Mexican Catholics and evangelicals tend to view transgenderism as a lifestyle choice,” said Chesnut. “But the fact that Santa Muerte is outside the orbit of both evangelical and Catholic Christianity makes her much more appealing. It’s much easier for followers to feel that she’s not going to be judgmental.”

In contrast, many transgender women feel rejected by mainstream churches.

“I went with some transgender friends to Mass one time,” said Ballesteros. “The priest stopped his sermon and told us to leave the house of God. After that, I decided I wouldn’t ever go back.”

The Rev. Hugo Valdemar Romero, a spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Mexico City, said the church does not abandon or excommunicate transgender people. But he does believe they suffer from pathology.

“Of course it is not acceptable for someone to violate their own biology,” he said. “Nature is very clear. There are men and there are women.”

As for Santa Muerte, Romero considers it a heretical cult.

“True religion looks for the devotee to fulfill the will of God, not the other way around. If they opt for another church or belief that justifies what they’re doing, they are looking for a god made to their own measure.”

Despite the church’s condemnation, many Santa Muerte devotees describe themselves as Catholic.

The civil rights organization Transgender Europe has documented 247 killings of transgender people in Mexico between January 2008 and April 2016, the second-highest number in the world, after Brazil.

The life expectancy of transgender women in Latin America is 35, according to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

“Transgender people are more likely to become involved in substance and alcohol abuse and they are less likely to have strong networks of family and others on whom they can count,” said Cymene Howe, an anthropologist who has studied the importance of Santa Muerte among transgender sex workers who migrate between Guadalajara and San Francisco.

Except as victims, transgender women are virtually invisible to the rest of Mexican society. Even the brutal murder on March 11 was relegated to the back pages of local newspapers.

Transgender activist Ari Vera Morales was expelled from a teaching training college.

“The school said I was creating a negative image,” she said. “The problem with being a transgender women in Mexico is that your identity, your existence is criminalized.”

Yet Santa Muerte plays a vital role in helping to unify a community that lacks a voice and visibility.

“When I was 14 my mum kicked me out and I went to live in the house of a friend,” Ballesteros said. “She had a big altar. I learned what a cult was, what death was, what everything was for.”

Read the full article from Religious News Service.