Li Yinhe, born in Beijing in 1952, is a sociologist, sexologist, and LGBT activist and has studied sexuality in China for over four decades. She is also considered a pioneer of gender studies and advocate of sexual openness in China. She shared with us the huge changes she has seen in China, throughout the entire country as well as within the LGBT community.
“I believe the changes [in attitudes towards sex] have been huge. In the past, sex was only a way to produce children and expand your family. Since the implementation of family planning, this was bound to change since families were only allowed to have one child, or two in the countryside. Now people have sex for their own enjoyment rather than just as a means to procreate,” Li says.
“I remember about 20 years ago, in the People’s Daily, homosexuality, prostitution, and drugs were all supposedly linked to social evils. This was the media’s attitude towards the LGBT community before, and a main reason for discrimination against the LGBT community.”
Li emphasizes the increasing visibility of the LGBT community, and how much more frequently they are now mentioned in state media. This wasn’t the same even 10 years ago, when everybody was convinced that no one was gay, and so they had never met someone who purported to be homosexual. The LGBT community back then was completely invisible. Read More
Colombia: Changing gender identity card is fast and simple
Members of Colombia’s transgender community now will have an easier time changing their names and sex on identification cards under a new law. Colombians will be able to change their sex on identification forms without having to prove their sexual identity through psychiatric or physical evaluations.
Justice Minister Yesid Reyes told Colombian newspaper El Espectador he approved the rule change Friday to allow people to change their sex on government-issued ID cards by signing a document before a notary, bypassing the “cumbersome” way those changes currently are approved.
Nevertheless, Colombia’s transgender community remains vulnerable to discrimination and violence. Nearly 70 transgender people have been slain in Colombia in the last eight years, according to Todd Howland, the U.N. human rights representative in Colombia.
Europe: The Best And Worst Places In Europe To Be Trans
Transgender people might be more visible than ever, but across much of Europe having their gender identity recognised by law remains either impossible, or beset by obstacles. The group Transgender Europe has released a report with a wealth of detailed findings about the differing rights of trans people across the continent. The study compared policies and laws for trans people in 22 different areas, including asylum, employment discrimination, hate speech laws, goods and services discrimination, and whether official documents can be changed to register gender identity. Read more
A New Era For Global LGBT Rights Begins After Ireland’s Vote for Same-Sex Marriage
When historians write about the global LGBT rights movement, they will probably divide their timeline into “Before Ireland” and “After Ireland.”
Before Ireland, a country whose sodomy law wasn’t struck down until 1993, the goal of changing a nation’s mind about LGBT rights seemed daunting if not impossible. After Ireland, it seems like it may just be a matter of time even in countries where public support for LGBT equality remains very low and where powerful religious institutions are vocally opposed. Read More
Ireland becomes first country to approve same-sex marriage by popular vote
Ireland has officially passed the same-sex marriage referendum with 1.2 million people voting in its favour. The result was confirmed just before 7pm on Saturday although the result was clear from very early in the count. The Yes vote prevailed by 62 to 38 per cent with a large 60.5 per cent turnout. In total, 1,201,607 people voted in favour with 734,300 against, giving a majority of 467,307. The total valid poll was 1,935,907.
As the result emerged on Saturday afternoon thousands of people gathered in the courtyard of Dublin Castle amid scenes of widespread jubilation.
Senior politicians welcomed the result, with Minister for Health Leo Varadkar saying the overwhelming Yes vote makes Ireland a “beacon of light” for the rest of the world in terms of liberty and equality.
“It’s a historical day for Ireland,” he told RTÉ, a “social revolution”, adding that had any constituencies voted No, it would only have been a handful. In the end there was just one. Mr Varadkar revealed publicly during the referendum campaign that he was gay.
The eyes of the world have been trained on Ireland with the story featuring prominently in international media throughout the weekend. Taoiseach Enda Kenny said the referendum turnout showed the “palpable movement” of people wanting to be involved.
He particularly noted how young people had travelled around the country to “to put a single mark” on a ballot paper, demonstrating the value of the issue at hand. Paul Moran of Millward Brown told RTÉ voter turnout had proved vital and that youth had driven the result, if not entirely deciding it. Social media has played a central role, he said.
UK: Britain Now Has More Openly LGBTQ Legislators Than Any Other Country
This isn’t a great moment to be a liberal in Britain. In last Thursday’s general election, our largest left-wing party was eviscerated, leaving the Conservative Party with enough of a majority to do pretty much whatever it wants over the next five years. (So far, this appears to be cutting disability benefits, scrapping the Human Rights Act, and bringing back foxhunting.)
But while the country now has the least progressive government it’s seen since the early ’90s, there are a few sources of liberal glee: Britain now has 191 female MPs, more than ever before, and the number of black and ethnic minority legislators increased from 27 to 43. Oh, and somehow, fusty old Britain now holds the world record for LGBTQ political representation. Read More
Canada: A new hope for international gay rights
The Dignity Initiative, an LGBT human rights working group, launched on May 14 with a panel discussion. The initiative aims to advance Canadian involvement in international LGBT human rights by connecting existing human rights organizations across the country.
In addition to building on existing Canadian efforts, the Dignity Initiative is developing a non-partisan policy document that will outline recommendations as to how the Canadian government can advance LGBT human rights globally. The Initiative is soliciting public input to inform its future development via a survey for Canadian LBGT and human rights organizations available at www.dignityinitiative.ca
Read More
South Korea: Support across sectors
The biggest IDAHOT festivity in South Korean history was held by 103 LGBTI, women’s, people with disabilities’, labor, human rights, and civil society organizations and 159 supporters. With the title “STOP HATRED and OPEN the SQUARE”, over 1000 people from all over the country celebrated IDAHOT at the Seoul Station Square.
The organizers issued “Demands of the Joint Action for the 2015 International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBiT)” and “Resolution of the Joint Action for the 2015 International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBiT)”. Read More
Albania: Activists ask the Prime Minister to keep his promises
Hundreds of activists participated in the 4th Pride event riding bicycles in the capital city Tirana. They protested the domestic violence which LGBTI people face every day and they demanded that Prime Minister Edi Rama keep his promises to the community.
“We were only 12 people who challenged the discrimination and fear in 2012 and now we are hundreds”, said Kristi Pinderi, activist. He added: “We know we are thousand and we protest today also on behalf of those who cannot be here. Missing is our Prime Minister Edi Rama and the leader of the opposition Lulzim Basha who know very well they give promises but they always fail to keep them”. Read More
Turkey: On IDAHOT, LGBTI individuals face countless problems
In Turkey, as in many other regions of the world, prejudice and discrimination not only cause LGBTIs to be excluded from health programs and limit their access to health services but also deprive them of the most basic human rights. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity show themselves in the forms of violence and hate murders. While numerous LGBTIs are massacred in hate murders, many others are forced into making their voices heard through suicide. In the meantime, the government, which refuses to recognize the very reality of LGBTIs, fails to take any legal precautions to protect LGBTIs whom it deprives of basic human rights.
Social Policies, Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation Studies Association (SPoD) has began its journey with the goal of drawing attention to the discrimination against LGBTIs and of producing stronger solutions to their problems. SPoD has compiled 24 problems commonly experienced by LGBTIs. Read More
Lebanon: Gays come out to demand equality
As Lebanon's gay community kicks off a new public campaign to counter discrimination and the social taboos against homosexuality, its message is simple: "Being different isn't shameful. What's shameful is fighting diversity."
The group, Proud Lebanon, has roped in celebrities such as actors Christian Chueiri, Zeina Dakash and Fouad Yameen for its campaign. While Lebanon is sometimes dubbed the "gay paradise" of the Arab world, the community still remains vulnerable to exploitation.
Article 534 of the Lebanese penal code says sex "contrary to nature" is a criminal offence that can lead to jail time for the gay community. The campaign is trying to build on a 2013 decision by the country's psychiatric board to remove homosexuality from a list of mental illnesses. Read More
Council of Europe: Human rights and intersex people.
European society remains largely unaware of the reality of intersex people. However, through the pioneering work of a growing number of intersex groups and individual activists, the human rights community and international organisations are becoming increasingly conscious of this situation and are working to draw on human rights standards to address such concerns.
This issue paper aims to stimulate the development of a framework of action by suggesting a two-pronged approach. On the one hand, it calls on member states to end medically unnecessary “normalising” treatment of intersex persons when it is enforced or administered without the free and fully informed consent of the person concerned. On the other, it provides possible ways forward in terms of protection against discrimination of intersex people, adequate recognition of their sex on official documents and access to justice.