The more you refuse to hear our voice – The louder we will sing

“The higher you build your barriers
The taller I become
The farther you take my rights away
The faster I will run
You can deny me
You can decide to turn your face away
No matter, cos there’s
Something inside so strong”

Human rights are universal and egalitarian. Thus, each and every human being is entitled to human rights irrespective of their sexual, racial, religious and ethnic orientation. In spite of this, most of the times sexual minorities are subjected to victimization and discrimination by their own societies and communities. The threats to human rights of the lesbians, gay, bisexual and transgendered people (LGBT) often emerge from their own communities and social forces that only recognize heterosexuality. Hence, across the world, sexual minorities are invisible and hidden due to dominant social and cultural attitudes.

However, unlike the rights of other minority groups such as religious, ethnic and indigenous groups, the issue of sexual minority rights has entered international human rights agenda only recently with human rights mechanisms such as Yogyakarta principles (2007). Further, there is an ongoing debate on whether the rights of sexual minorities should be recognized and accepted in the broader human rights framework.

“Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible.”- (United Nations 2012).

The above mentioned UN definition also mentions that human rights are applicable to everyone without any discrimination. Sexuality and sexual orientation are a major part of human identity and play an important role in human identity and people’s private lives. Therefore, sexual minorities should not be discriminated based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Indeed, the international human rights agenda, which seeks to ensure everyone’s human rights, should take this issue into account.

 Why LGBTQ Rights Matters?

When we consider sexual minority rights, we can highlight three significant reasons why we should incorporate sexual minority rights into the international human rights agenda. The first reason is that there is a large number of human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Hate crimes against sexual minorities are spreading all over the world. LGBTs are facing corrective rapes, physical and mental torture as well as unfair treatment.

The second reason is legal discrimination against sexual minorities. Most countries are practicing sodomy laws, anti-bullying legislation against sexual minorities, and criminalizing homosexual behavior. According to the Equaldex 2018, there are 73 countries mostly in the Middle East, Africa and Asia where homosexuality is illegal.

The third reason is, in the early years, the general opinion about homosexuality was that it is a mental disorder. This opinion about the LGBT groups; led to LGBT rights being kept out of the international human rights agenda. Moreover, homosexuality was included in the World Health Organization’s international classification of disease list until 1993. Therefore, LGBTs are sexual minorities and like other minority groups, they also deserve basic human rights and protection.

According to Amnesty International “Love is a Human Right”. Therefore, the international community should take LGBT rights into its international agenda.

How it All Began? Historical Evolution of LGBT rights movements

At first LGBTQ movement started at the West, especially Europe and North America, because LGBT groups from these parts of the world first came out with their demands for equal rights.  As Ramakrishnan also notes, “Historically, the substantial impetus for queer activism in India and other South Asian countries has come from organizations based in Europe and North America.

There is a long history of discrimination against homosexuality. In modern history, the trial of Oscar Wilde highlighted the late Victorian notion of homosexuality in England in 1895. He was arrested under restrictive legislation which criminalized same-sex acts. As a response to this situation, we see the emergence of LGBT movements.

Homophile movement

In the early ages, LGBT groups used the term “homophile” to describe their movements. The term “homophile” means “loving the same”. After World War II, homophile organizations began to spread all over the world and, most significantly, the Mattachine Society (Los Angeles) and East Coast Homophile Organizations were formed in the USA in the 1950-1960s. They encouraged LGBT individuals and raised their voice against discriminatory treatments and sodomy law. In 1955, the first lesbian homophile movement Daughters of Bilities was formed in San Francisco. All these organizations gave encouragement to LGBT groups to step forward and built the foundations to take sexual minority rights into the international agenda.

Remembering the Stonewall Riots: 50 years after the event

The Stonewall riots were a turning point of the modern LGBT rights movement in the USA and elsewhere as well. Patrick (2010) writes, “I remember feeling jubilant and joyful and angry. Something finally had to give. The gay people said, No more, no more abuse.”Not only gays, lesbians and transgender people but others who supported these groups as well-formed collective groups in that movement; they fought with the police against the torture and harassment of gays in Greenwich Village, New York City, on 28th June 1969 wherein gay patrons were harassed and arrested, and one individual got killed by the police. Protesters demanded the recognition of gay rights and decriminalization of gay relationships. Many gay people got the courage to come forward without hesitation and act as they are. They were demanding respect and they were demanding the right to be different.

Post Stonewall Riots

The 1970s became more significant because we can see the seeds of modern-day international LGBT rights movements in this period. For example, in 1973, after a long struggle, LGBT organizations were successful in removing homosexuality from the mental illness list of American Psychiatric Association. 1978 is a major turning point in LGBT rights history because the International Gay Association was formed in England. Indeed, international discussions were organized all over the world to discuss the issue areas related to LGBT groups. For example, the International Tribunal on Crimes against Women held in Brussels in 1976 mentioned that “compulsory heterosexuality” is also a crime against women.n 1985, UN Women’s day conference in Nairobi provided workshops for the lesbian in Kenya. In 1992, the first gay man addressed the UN Sub-commission of the Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities on equal rights of LGBTs. In 1995, lesbian rights were linked with women’s rights at the United Nations World Conference on Women held in Beijing.

Responses of States

According to Equeldex 2018, there are 8 countries in which homosexuality is punishable by death. On the other end, 26 countries such as the Netherlands, Australia, Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Norway, Portugal, Uruguay, Sweden, Spain, and South Africa and allow same-sex marriage. In 1981 Norway became the first country to provide civil rights rules for homosexuality. In 2007, Nepal legalized homosexuality. The Supreme Court of India decriminalized homosexuality in 2018 by declaring section 377 of the Indian penal code unconstitutional.

Are LGBT Rights Human Rights?

International Human Rights Instruments regarding Sexual Minority Rights

 During the last few decades, sexual minority rights were pushed into the international human rights agenda by LGBT activist groups, LGBT social movement, and global advocacy networks. The International Bill of rights includes the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the 1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESR). The article 2 of all three conventions note that states should guarantee everyone’s rights “without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status” Therefore, all the rights which are included in these three instruments are equally applicable to sexual minorities as well.

The other international human rights mechanisms that are applicable to protect sexual minority rights include the Convention Against Torture (CAT), International Labor Organization Convention (No. 111) on Discrimination in Employment or Occupation, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Radical Discrimination (ICERD), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)etc.

The Yogyakarta Principles (2007)

 In 2006, human rights experts, academics, judges, UN experts and representatives from NGOs met at Yogyakarta, Indonesia, and produced the Yogyakarta principles. The final purpose of this meeting was to produce an international human rights instrument for sexual minorities. These principles act against all types of discriminations which are based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and seek to ensure for the LGBTs the right to universal enjoyment of human rights, the right to equality and non-discrimination, the right of recognition before the law, the right to life, the right to security, the right to privacy, the right to education etc (The Yogyakarta Principles 2007).

Bringing Sexual minority rights into the international agenda has not been an easy process. In the last few decades, LGBT groups tried their best to push this issue into the international agenda through their activism but still, their efforts have not been heeded. Sexual minority rights can be protected through international human rights instrument like the international bill of rights and other relevant human rights mechanisms, especially Yogyakarta principles. But these rights are yet to be very limited.