LGBTI Rights are Human Rights

This week, Global Rights and our local partners in Sierra Leone, Dignity Association and Pride Equality, crossed a milestone. Together, we released the first ever published report on the situation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) individuals in Sierra Leone, Discrimination on the Basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Access to Health Care and Violence/Bias: A Sierra Leone Case Study. 



Report Cover

We celebrated this achievement with a special launch event on Thursday in Freetown, Sierra Leone.  It was very rewarding to see the unified support from the U.S. Embassy in Sierra Leone, the Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone, the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation, the Coalition for Civil society for Health Rights and Accountability, the Sierra Leone Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (SLANGO), and the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone.

The Honorable Michael S. Owen, Ambassador of the United States to Sierra Leone, and Paula Schriefer, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Organization Affairs, highlighted the report’s significance both for Sierra Leone and for the greater African context in their opening remarks.

Ambassador Owen mentioned that it is “inspiring to a lot of people and this [the report] will do a lot to improve the situation of LGBTI people in Sierra Leone.”


Ambassador Owen with Global Rights' Partner, George Freeman

The report is the compilation of two research projects initiated in 2012 as part of our project to strengthen Sierra Leonean LGBTI civil society organizations' monitoring and documentation of human rights violations. In addition to presenting the problem of discrimination against the LGBTI community, the report also offers concrete recommendations to the government, Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone, local police and the international community to better protect the rights of the Sierra Leonean LGBTI community.

We have provided activists in Sierra Leone with an essential tool for increased advocacy work on policy and laws to influence critical structural and behavioral changes in the country— something that is essential for the fulfillment of human rights. 

As Ms. Shallac Sony Davies from SLANGO said during the launch, “we don’t want the government or other stakeholders to look at the report as a tool to accuse them for wrongdoings, but, to look at it as an eye opener on the issue of violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity issues, a topic that has never been formally addressed.”

I hope this report encourages other LGBTI communities – in Africa and beyond – to hold their governments accountable for upholding international human rights norms and standards so that all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, are entitled to their inherent human rights.

Susan


Global Rights would like to thank the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL) for making this work possible.

Posted by Susan M. Farnsworth

First Time on the Fringes

Hi, there! It’s Donald (Don) Rukare, Global Rights’ Uganda country director. I am spending this week over 210 miles away from our headquarters in Kampala in the remote Bundibugyo district with a team of 10 lawyers. We are bringing the justice system to one of the most underserved regions in the country.

After a nine hour drive down windy roads and rocky dirt paths, the team and I were finally greeted by our partners in Bundibugyo. For the first time, qualified lawyers are present in the district. This week, they will play an important role in strengthening the skills and knowledge of our partner paralegals and providing access to the justice system for some of the most underserviced citizens.

Training participants role play

The lawyers will spend 11 days mentoring our Global Rights’ trained partner paralegals, providing them with valuable technical support. The lawyers will conduct human rights and legal awareness sessions, complimented by presentations on the local FM radio. Together with the paralegals, the lawyers will also conduct mobile legal aid clinics where they will provide much needed advice and guidance to the community.

We are also currently conducting a refresher training for our partner organizations and paralegals. The week-long session is focused on equipping 30 participants with a deeper knowledge of women’s, children’s and land rights, domestic violence, statutory rape and will writing.  I am excited to have two reputable human rights advocates, Sophie Dhatemwa and Ida Wadda, lead the trainings using a hands-on, interactive method. The group discussions and role plays are motivating the participants to learn how they can better serve their community.

There is no doubt that this groundbreaking collaboration will contribute to the legal empowerment of the vulnerable and neglected communities in Bundibugyo.  The lawyers are finding the experience very rewarding and enlightening, and the community could not be more appreciative of their guidance. It is evident that the paralegals are providing an essential bridge for their communities to access justice in some of the most rural communities on the fringes of Uganda.

I look forward to updating you on our work.

Cheers!
Don

Global Rights thanks USAID for their generous support of this project.

Fair Justice for All

For the first time, representatives of the government of Burundi participated in a Global Rights forum that addresses critical shortcomings in the justice system in that country.

Edouard Minani, Coordinator of Institutional Support to the MoJ

Last week,  Global Rights Burundi and the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) in Burundi gathered representatives of the MoJ, judges, and prosecutors together with civil society leaders and lawyers to discuss practical means to reduce judicial delays in general and the need to reduce impunity for rape and other gender-based violence specifically.  I had the opportunity to take part in this gathering and was truly inspired by the collaboration Global Rights was able to facilitate.

Officials from the MoJ shared with us their newly gained appreciation for the value of strategic litigation, particularly the impact such litigation can have to create precedence.  Additionally, they, with the rest of those in attendance, came to the understanding that if done well, strategic litigation is an effective tool for greater efficiency in the administration of justice.

We have been working with human rights organizations and lawyers over the past year to use strategic litigation to tackle systemic obstacles to access to justice – government inaction or delayed government action that results in denial of the right to a fair hearing due to unreasonable judicial delays and the failure to conduct effective investigations of gross human rights violations.

Our USAID-funded project has provided substantive law and skills training, practical mentoring, and financial assistance to improve civil society’s understanding of and ability to use strategic litigation as a means to highlight these systemic human rights violations.  

Indicative of the scope of fair trial violations, Burundi has a judicial backlog of nearly 60,000 cases.  Participants identified opportunities to make better use of Burundian laws in areas of interpretation and implementation, for example, that could reduce delays. The meeting developed concrete measures using specific provisions of Burundian law that are often overlooked by practitioners, which, if utilized could reduce delays.

Group work on legal aid

An important part of the forum focused on prosecution of rape cases. Participants acknowledged that widespread use by prosecutors and judges of the vaguely defined misdemeanor of “domestic rape“ has resulted in impunity for perpetrators of serious offenses through the imposition of extremely lenient sentences attached to this charge. Article. 554 of the criminal code reads: “Whoever is charged of ‘domestic rape’ shall be sentenced to 8 days of imprisonment and fined five (5) to twenty seven (27) US dollars or one of these two punishments.”

Representative of the urgency to effectively address gender-based violence, over 100 rapes are reported each month in Bujumbura alone.  There are no accurate statistics on the number of unreported cases.  Officials widely recognized the need to clarify the law to better ensure justice for survivors of rape.

I came away from the two day intensive dialogue and exchange of ideas knowing that our partners in the MoJ, prosecutors and civil society legal practitioners will be putting their action plans into practice.  Their commitment to carry on this work is clear – they are proud of their profession and they are determined to ensure that every Burundian citizen should enjoy an effective and fair justice system.

Susan

Posted by Susan M. Farnsworth

Equality for Ethnic Minorities

More than 65 ethnic groups call Uganda home—65! Living in a country so diverse, Ugandan civil society organizations agree that ethnic tensions are present, significantly as a result of discriminatory practices by the government.  However, the government denies the existence of any such ethnic discrimination. 

Most recently, development of the country’s oil resources has exacerbated tensions between those ethnic groups that stand most to benefit from newly found riches and those that are excluded. Although oil development will bring additional wealth to the country, ethnic minorities– those that do not have access to power or decision making – are excluded from what should be a shared benefit for all.

As you can see, the topic of ethnic minorities in Uganda is complex. I’ve witnessed this firsthand while visiting our Uganda country office and partners this past week.  During my trip, I attended the final workshop of our project for the development of advocacy strategies on key human rights issues for ethnic minorities.

The project, funded by the Ford Foundation, has made tremendous progress in one year, evidenced by the high level of workshop participation this past Thursday and Friday.  The 24 participants did a deep dive into the two advocacy campaigns that had been identified in the previous workshops – access to land and access to education for ethnic minorities.  Those campaigns have gained depth and commitment as a result of the project.   And, an informal network has even formed among the participants that includes two key state institutions, the Ugandan Human Rights Commission (UHRC) and the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC).

I was truly impressed by the honesty and the transparency of the conversation. The willingness to share personal stories with others in the room underscored the trust that Global Rights Uganda has built with the participants.  They recognized that to move this work of advancing the rights of ethnic minorities forward, there needs to be a more open dialogue rather than conversations behind closed doors that only deepen tensions. 

I’m excited to see the momentum grow. My hope is that this work will be able to develop and expand, bringing together even more civil society and government officials who are committed to change the discourse and open up dialogue. This is critical if Uganda wants to ensure a fair and equal access to all its citizens. 

Susan

Posted by Susan M. Farnsworth

Discrimination in the Dominican Republic

Did you know that discrimination against people of Haitian descent (Dominico-Haitians) is hindering the lives and rights of thousands in the Dominican Republic? What if I told you the Dominican government isn’t doing anything to stop it, but rather, is promoting policies that would strip these individuals of their citizenship…

Hi there, it’s Carlos Quesada, Global Rights’ Racial and Ethnic Equality Program director, with some important news to share.  

Over the past decade, legal Haitian immigrants have been the backbone of the sugarcane, construction and service industries in the Dominican Republic. However, deep rooted racism has denied Dominicans of Haitian descent basic economic and social rights such as legal employment, education, access to social services and even marriage.  Most recently, this racism has been fueled by the Dominican government’s efforts to deny Dominican nationality to individuals of Haitian descent.  This process violates the American Convention on Human Rights, to which the government of the Dominican Republic is a party.

Last week, I accompanied our partner, the Jacques Viau Network—a group of organizations that advocates for the rights of Haitians and Dominico-Haitians in the Dominican Republic– to the  82nd Session of the UN Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UN CERD) in Geneva, Switzerland. There, I worked with members Maria Martinez and Manuel Dandre from the Movimiento Socio-Cultural de Trabajadores Haitianos and William Charpantier from Fundacion Etnica Integral preparing their brief to committee members on the situation of Dominico-Haitians.


Maria Martinez at UN CERD

Our partners presented the following recommendations to the committee for their official report to the Dominican government to address this serious human rights violation:

• Recognize the existence of racial discrimination in the country
• Stop the denationalization  process of Dominico-Haitians
• Include specific data in the census on race and gender
• Stop mass expulsions of Haitians and Dominico-Haitians
• Appoint a human rights official in the country to investigate human rights concerns

 

We urge the UN CERD to consider these recommendations in their final report to the Dominican government, which must be held accountable to their duty to protect the human rights of all their citizens, regardless of race or ethnicity. Input and pressure from the UN CERD are critical steps in ensuring this accountability.

 

I look forward to keeping you updated on the process.

Saludos,

Carlos

 

Rise Up for Women

It comes as no surprise that the rights of women are a significant focus of our activities. At Global Rights, we believe that all women, regardless of race, class or nationality deserve the same opportunities—and the same protection from violence. We know that true societal change only occurs when everyone’s rights are addressed, defended and insured.

That is why we work to empower women in some of the toughest places it is to be a woman.

• In Afghanistan, where opportunities are far and few, we are committed to ensuring that women are safe from violence. Through our Legal Advice Bureaus  run by our Afghan partners, we are showing women how to access the justice system in five Afghan provinces. Global Rights has created an environment in which even the most marginalized women can ask questions and voice concerns about their rights, and file cases to defend those rights.

Legal assistance training workshop in Morocco
with our partner, Association Amal

• For the past 12 years, Global Rights has also been working alongside 10 Moroccan women’s organizations, providing them with the tools and skills they need to teach women about their human and legal rights, and developing strategies to articulate and demand those rights. Currently, our Moroccan partners are spearheading efforts to push their government to adopt a specific violence against women (VAW) law. Domestic violence is pervasive in Morocco and a specific VAW law would legally grant women proper protection. If passed, it would be the first of its kind in the Arab world.
  
• In some of the most underserved regions of Nigeria and Uganda, Global Rights works alongside local human rights and women’s organizations to ensure that women are protected from human rights violations under the law. Click here to hear our Nigerian partner, the Isa Wali Empowerment Initiative, discuss how they are putting a stop to violence against women and children.  
  
• In the first program of its kind in Burundi, Global Rights is coordinating an effort with our Burundian partners to bring high-impact strategic litigation to the courts for victims of gender-based violence.  In Burundi, there is currently no movement to promote the legal rights of victims of violence and to help them secure justice in court. Through strategic litigation, a change in the practice and policy of Burundi’s prosecutors in weighing evidence of gender-based violence is designed to increased prosecution of these crimes in the future.

• In Brazil, Colombia and Peru, we know that women of African descent are more susceptible to discrimination and human rights violations, and particularly, violence. We’re working alongside some of the most dedicated Afro-descendant organizations in South America to help them with their struggle for equal rights. Click here to read more about the recent work of our Brazilian partner, Articulação de Mulheres Negras do Brasil (AMNB). 



As you can see, Global Rights continues to grow our network of advocates and activists to help women assert and defend their inherent rights around the world— a world in which we strive for all, regardless of gender, ethnicity or background, to achieve their full potential.


Susan

Posted by Susan M. Farnsworth

Domestic Workers Deserve Protection

Last week, the International Labour Organization (ILO) released their first ever Global Report on Domestic Workers as follow up to their 2011 passage of Convention no. 189: Decent Work for Domestic Workers.  Upon reading the report, I immediately thought about Global Rights’ work in Brazil, and how Convention no.189 is critical to protecting more women from violence.

Global Rights' and AMNB's report on the
situation of Afro-Brazilian domestic workers

The ILO report captures the size of the global domestic work sector and the extent of legal protection enjoyed by domestic workers. The report concludes that domestic workers are a highly feminized sector (with more than 80% women) who remain largely excluded from the scope of labor laws and hence from legal protection enjoyed by other workers.

Coincidentally, this year, Global Rights and our partner, Articulação de Mulheres Negras do Brasil (AMNB), published a report on the situation of Afro-Brazilian domestic workers. 

We found that the majority of domestic workers in Brazil are of African descent (70%) and suffer from numerous human rights violations. They are at greater risk of violence—including physical, mental and sexual violence. Notably, less than 1/4 of these domestic workers have  legal contracts with benefits.

In February 2012, Global Rights and AMNB presented a shadow report on the situation of Afro-Brazilian women to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). We highlighted the issue of discrimination, especially that suffered by those working as domestic labor. It was at that same session that CEDAW recommended to the Government of Brazil to ratify Convention no. 189 in order to provide full protection for domestic workers.  However, the Government of Brazil has yet to act.

We strongly encourage the Government of Brazil to ratify this convention. By doing so, they will grant their citizens who are employed as domestic workers the legal protections from human rights violations that they deserve. This would be an important step forward not only for the Afro-Brazilian population, but for all domestic workers in Brazil.

Susan

Posted by Susan M. Farnsworth