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Uganda Resolutions in U.S. Congress
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The U.S. Senate has
unanimously passed a resolution introduced by U.S. Senators Russ Feingold
(D-WI), Tom Coburn (R-OK), Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Susan Collins (R-ME)
condemning the "Anti-Homosexuality" bill in Uganda and calling for all
countries to decriminalize consensual homosexual relations. See a copy of the resolution and the press statement from Sen. Feingold. The bipartisan nature of the resolution, which bridges
strong ideological divides in the Senate, reflects the extent to which US
officials, from Congressional leaders to the President to the Secretary of
State to our Ambassador in Uganda, have spoken with one voice to oppose the
bill as a fundamental assault on basic human rights. It is also remarkable in its forward leaning posture, as it looks beyond this one odious bill in Uganda, which may soon be withdrawn from parliament, and recognizes the inherent harm in all criminalization efforts, while calling on all countries to decriminalize consensual homosexual conduct and protect the fundamental human rights of LGBT individuals. The U.S. House
of Representatives is considering a similar resolution. House Resolution 1064 was introduced with
bipartisan support from more than three dozen members of Congress and currently
has 62 co-sponsors.
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UN to Review LGBT
Record of United States
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At the end of April, the Council for Global Equality and its
19 organizational members submitted a report to the United Nations on
the human rights record of the United States, focusing on a variety of LGBT
issues here at home. This submission is a rare example of international and
domestic advocacy coming together to reinvigorate one another. The report was
submitted for "Universal Periodic Review," a relatively new mechanism of the UN's
Human Rights Council by which every nation has its own human rights record
reviewed by other states in a peer review process. The United States has signed
a number of international human rights treaties, and in November the UN will
assess whether the United States is complying with its international human
rights obligations based on those agreed standards. This process is one of the
key "naming and shaming" tools that the UN uses to address human rights issues
around the world, and it is a mechanism that LGBT groups have increasingly relied
on to draw international attention to our struggles for equality.
As a part of the Universal Periodic Review process,
the U.S. Department of State is also collecting the perspectives of communities
and nonprofit organizations before it reports on itself to the United Nations.
Together with other federal agencies, State Department officials have traveled
the country convening "listening sessions" as part of this self-reporting
process. Last month, they listened to groups in San Francisco, including a
panel of individuals convened by the Council for Global Equality who personally
testified on the impact of human rights abuses committed on the basis of sexual
orientation and gender identity here in the United States. Those powerful and
heartbreaking personal stories can be heard here (UPR LGBT Panel),
and they remind us that these are not esoteric issues of international treaty
law - these are real issues that impact real people every day in our country
and in so many other countries around the world.
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Malawi Resolution Introduced in U.S. House of
Representatives
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Representatives Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
have introduced House Resolution 1335 calling on the
Government of Malawi to release Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza, who
were arrested after they affirmed their relationship in a traditional
engagement ceremony. The two individuals stand accused of
"committing acts of gross indecency," which is punishable by up to 14
years in prison under Malawian law. Steven Monjeza's health has
deteriorated under the harsh prison conditions to which they both have been
confined for nearly five months. The court is expected to issue a
judgment in the case later this month. Please contact your member of Congress to ask your representative to co-sponsor this resolution, which recognizes that high
levels of stigma and discrimination, exclusionary policies, and harsh criminal
penalties against sexual conduct by consenting adults constitute fundamental
human rights violations.
U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI), Chairman of the U.S.
Senate's Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs, also sent a letter to the President of Malawi expressing
concern at the human rights implications raised by the case.
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Senate Committee Passes Feingold Amendment
Strengthening LGBT Protections Worldwide
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 Last month, U.S.
Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) offered an amendment to a bill under consideration in the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee to help the State Department address LGBT
human rights concerns abroad. The amendment tracks language already adopted
last year by the U.S. House of Representatives.
The successful bipartisan amendment calls on the
Secretary of State to work through U.S. embassies to encourage the reform or
repeal of laws that criminalize consensual homosexual activity. It also
strengthens LGBT reporting in the annual State Department Human Rights Report,
urges the State Department to designate one or more officers to monitor
violence and laws related to sexual orientation and introduces LGBT subjects into
the human rights training offered to U.S. Foreign Service Officers. The
amendment was cosponsored by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and passed on a
12-7 roll call vote, with all Democrats and Republican Senator Bob Corker
(R-TN) voting in favor of the proposal. See a copy of Sen. Feingold's press statement.
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International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO)
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The
International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) is on May 17. IDAHO commemorates the day 20 years ago
when the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from its list of
mental disorders. The date is
commemorated around the world, and it has particular meaning in many countries
where more open "Pride" celebrations are not possible because of hostile social
and legal environments. A list of
commemorations around the world is posted on our blog - Global Equality Today.
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Sincerely, 
Mark Bromley
Council for Global Equality
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