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Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer, non-binary, gender-fluid people are still persecuted in many countries simply for their sexual orientation or gender identity.
In many countries, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people are imprisoned and even sentenced to death under laws that criminalize and prohibit their sexual orientation or gender identity and make kissing a crime. They are tortured to extract confessions of "deviance" and raped to "cure" them of it, with no respect for sexual and gender diversity.
Gender diversity is still punished in many countries.
Amnesty International has been working since 1991 for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) people, who are not respected in many parts of the world:
They are denied equal enjoyment of their right to life, liberty, and physical integrity, and are unable to live a life free from violence.
They are stripped of fundamental rights such as the freedoms of association and expression.
Their rights to privacy, work, education, and healthcare are curtailed.
The penalties imposed on the basis of sexual orientation or identity vary widely. In 12 countries, homosexuality can carry the death penalty, although not all apply it. These include Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Iran, and Uganda.
A total of 62 UN member states criminalize consensual same-sex relations, and the vast majority punish them with prison sentences, although some also punish them with public flogging.
Furthermore, there are countries where homosexuality is not legally punishable, but where LGBTIQ+ people suffer daily discrimination and hate crimes. The homophobic and transphobic discourse of many government officials, politicians, religious leaders, and media outlets fosters a climate of intolerance and discrimination against the sexual diversity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people, and even encourages violence against them. Of these, transgender people are the target of both anti-rights discourse and the highest levels of violence.
North Africa
We have spoken with LGBTI people who have been stabbed, kicked, burned with cigarette butts, and threatened with death because of their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Gender identity and sexual orientation as human rights.
Just as sex and race, gender identity and sexual orientation are linked to fundamental aspects of human identity and affect the core of a person's right to physical and mental integrity.
Therefore, the lack of respect for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people—including same-sex civil marriage—falls squarely within the realm of human rights and is a cause for concern for Amnesty International. May 17 marks the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, a day to combat the discrimination that still exists to a greater or lesser extent in all countries of the world.
In many countries, one can speak of genuine persecution of sexual diversity, with laws that deem homosexual relations illegal and carry prison and even death sentences.
In some cases, political leaders display aggressive homophobia, such as Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, who once publicly declared that homosexuals are "worse than pigs and dogs." Former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh also stated during his term that he would "kill" anyone who cited the persecution of LGBTIQ people as a reason to seek asylum abroad. "Some people go to the West and claim they are homosexuals and that their lives are in danger in Gambia, so that they can be granted a stay in Europe. If I catch them, I will kill them," he said in a speech in the city of Basse. Meanwhile, Turkish President Erdogan, in a pre-election speech, stated that "LGBTI is a poison injected into the institution of the family that cannot be accepted." Pride has been banned in that country since 2015.
In Hungary, the "Propaganda Law" encourages increased stigmatization and negative stereotypes of LGBTIQ+ people, and any demonstrations in defense of LGBTIQ+ rights have recently been banned. In Russia, LGBTIQ+ organizations are also being harassed with accusations such as seeking to "reduce the population of the Russian Federation." The ruling by the Russian Supreme Court, which labels the "international LGBTIQ+ public movement" as "extremist" and effectively bans all public activities related to the LGBTIQ+ community, is having a terrifying impact on the population.
What's happening in the world with sexual diversity?
Sexual orientation and gender identity remain a social taboo in many Eastern and Central European countries, leading to rejection, discrimination, and abuse. These people frequently see their human rights violated in areas such as education, employment, and healthcare.
In countries such as Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, and Russia, violations of the right to freedom of expression and assembly, or hate crimes against these people, are common.
In Africa, a barrage of discriminatory laws incites hatred against LGBTIQ+ people, who continue to suffer abuse or discrimination in countries such as Ghana, Malawi, Zambia, and Uganda.
In the Americas, Brazil remains the deadliest country in the world for trans people. In countries such as Argentina, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, and Guatemala, high levels of hate crimes, hate speech, and discrimination, as well as murders and persecution of LGBTIQ+ activists, remain.
In Asia, in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, LGBTIQ+ people experience harassment, discrimination, and violence.
In the Middle East and North Africa, in Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Morocco, and Tunisia, LGBTIQ+ people are arrested and imprisoned on charges of "indecent acts" or "immoral conduct" and are prosecuted under laws that criminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations. In Yemen, all parties to the conflict continue to prosecute and target LGBTIQ+ people with arbitrary arrests, torture—including rape and other forms of sexual violence—threats, and harassment.
SOME FIGURES ON GENDER AND SEXUAL DIVERSITY
+4,500
From 2008 to 2023, more than 4,500 trans people were murdered worldwide.
94%
94% of trans people murdered in 2023 were trans women.
80%
80% of the victims murdered in 2023 were racialized trans women.
Amnesty International
Pride marches are about human rights: they empower LGBTI people to demand the rights and freedoms they are denied, as well as the public spaces from which they are often excluded.
The right of the LGBTIQ+ community to not suffer discrimination based on sexual or gender diversity.
This is a basic principle, clearly underlined in the main human rights instruments:
Article 7 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; and Article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
United Nations human rights treaty monitoring bodies, such as the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, have affirmed the prohibition of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The 2006 Yogyakarta Principles establish principles for the application of international human rights law in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights presented her first report on human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity in December 2012, noting that recognizing the equal rights of all people does not imply creating new rights or extending them to a new territory. It is about insisting that all people have the right to enjoy the same rights and equal protection of international law.
Same-sex marriage.
For Amnesty International, same-sex civil marriages put people's human rights at risk. In accordance with international standards, the organization believes that denying the right to marry based on the sex of partners violates the rights to non-discrimination, equality before the law, and the right to marry and form a family.
Amnesty International, which welcomed Law 13/2005 of July 1, which amended the Civil Code to recognize same-sex civil marriage, believes that States must protect and guarantee this right and refrain from discriminating against people based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
This position has been endorsed by the European Court of Human Rights, which recognized that same-sex couples have the right to marry and form a family based on Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Furthermore, the right of adults to enter into marriage voluntarily is recognized in Article 16 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 23 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Currently, more than 35 countries around the world have approved marriage equality. The latest countries to do so were Greece and Thailand.
Recognition of gender identity
Amnesty International believes that States are obligated to create gender self-determination mechanisms that are not pathologizing—that is, based on free choice, not on psychiatric diagnoses that endorse "gender dysphoria"—and that are rapid, confidential, administrative, and accessible to minors.
The lack of such mechanisms constitutes a violation of the human rights of trans people and exposes them to more discrimination and violence than they already suffer daily. For these people, having identity documents that recognize and reflect their gender identity is of great importance to being able to enjoy their human rights.
Not being able to obtain documents that reflect their gender identity can constitute a violation of trans people's right to privacy and, sometimes, also a violation of their right to legal recognition. Furthermore, imposing requirements such as treatment or medical reports to obtain legal gender recognition constitutes a violation of these people's right to health.
Therefore, it is necessary to eliminate any medical or psychological requirements that condition legal gender change in the registry. Currently, only 17 countries, including Spain, recognize gender identity based on self-determination.
What is Amnesty International asking for?
Respect the human rights of the LGBTIQ+ community. Guarantee their equality and non-discrimination and prevent persecution of those who defend their rights.
Repeal laws that declare same-sex relationships illegal and criminalize them. End executions based on these laws and order the immediate and unconditional release of people imprisoned for their sexual orientation or identity.
Promote equal education to prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Recognize the right of same-sex couples to marriage under equal conditions and guarantee the enjoyment of a wide range of other rights.
Recognize the right to identity of trans people, facilitating legal procedures for social name recognition and gender self-determination.
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