Dominica: Consensual 'buggery' will not be legalized

A recommendation to legalize consensual buggery among adults in Dominica, which was submitted to a committee recently set up to review the country’s Sexual Offenses Act was denied, Legal Consultant, Ray Harris has revealed.

The government is working on tightening the Sexual Offenses Act of 1998 and the committee, under the chairmanship of Harris, was set up in October 2015 to make necessary observations and recommendations. A draft will soon be sent to parliament for approval.

Local group, Minority Rights Dominica (MiriDom), has been calling on the government to take another look at the law with a view to having it repealed. Read more via Dominica News Online

US: Despite historic filibuster, Missouri senate advances legislative assault on LGBT People

HRC, the ACLU of Missouri, and PROMO strongly condemned a vote by the Missouri Senate in favor of Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 39 – a measure that could enshrine discrimination against LGBT people and their families into the state constitution. Similar to so-called “First Amendment Defense Act” legislation introduced in other states, this outrageous and extreme resolution would lead to a ballot measure that proposes to allow individuals, organizations, and businesses to use religion as a valid excuse to discriminate against LGBT people by broadly redefining the definition of religious organizations. The measure must receive one final administrative approval vote before being sent to the House of Representatives.

The vote to pass the outrageous proposal attacking LGBT Missourians and their families came after a historic filibuster effort by Senate Democrats attempting to stop the anti-equality majority. The discriminatory proposal has received widespread condemnation from fair-minded Missourians and businesses throughout the state, includingGovernor Jay Nixon, the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the St. Louis Regional Chamber, Dow Chemical Company, and Monsanto. The St. Louis Regional Chamber said the proposal is “counter to MO values & will have negative economic consequences.” Read more via HRC

Hungary: Blocks European agreement on LGBT rights

A European agreement to prevent discrimination against LGBT people has been blocked by Hungary.  The Dutch government, which currently holds the EU Presidency, had tabled the draft agreement at the Council of the European Union, which called on the European Commission to tackle homophobic and transphobic discrimination, promote measures to advance LGBTI equality, and step up efforts to collect data on the treatment of LGBTI citizens.

The agreement had been well received by the majority of member countries – with Latvia, Lithuania and Poland lifting their initial objections. However, the agreement was vetoed by the representatives for Hungary who blocked the agreement – the same day it also blocked a proposed deal with Turkey on the migration crisis.  Read more via PinkNews 

European Parliament demands protection LGBTI refugees, also from ‘safe’ countries

The European Parliament adopted a report on the situation of women refugees and asylum seekers in the EU, paying particular attention to the situation of LGBTI asylum seekers.

The report is a response to the invisibility of female refugees and their concerns in the wake of the steep increase of asylum seekers arriving in Europe. A significant part of the refugees and asylum seekers is LGBTI, who often face specific challenges, which are addressed in the report.

In response to the increased number of asylum seekers, the Commission has proposed establishing a common list of safe countries of origin, which would make it easier to send back asylum seekers coming from these countries. This list would include all Balkan states and Turkey. However, the Parliament recognized that LGBTI people may be subjected to abuse, even in countries which are considered ‘safe’. As such, it concludes, they have a legitimate request for protection. 

Read more via Intergroup on LGBT Rights
 

UK: Government pledges £1 million to tackle homophobic bullying

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has announced £1 million of funding, which is being put towards tackling LGBT bullying in schools. Mrs Morgan, who is also Minister for Equalities, said: “I am determined to do all I can to consign homophobic and transphobic bullying to the dustbin of history.”

Despite having opposed marriage equality in 2013, Morgan has made homophobic bullying one of her top priorities since taking the Education portfolio in the Conservative government. She had previously delivered a £2 million package in October 2014 to tackle the same issue.

Stonewall Chief Executive Ruth Hunt said the funding – which has been announced less than a month after the government rejected recommendations for mandatory, inclusive sex and relationship education in schools – was “crucial” to teaching young people about the importance of inclusivity and acceptance. Read more via Attitude 

Netherlands: Gay Refugees Face Death Threats, Abuse In Netherlands

The Dutch parliament is calling on the country’s government to offer emergency housing for gay refugees, who for months have been subject to death threats, intimidation and other forms of harassment at temporary shelters, LGBT activists say.

Members of parliament voted in favor of a motion earlier this week, requesting that the government “provide the possibility of separate and safe housing for LGBT and other vulnerable groups, if noted that their security can’t be guaranteed."

Philip Tijsma, public affairs manager at an LGBT rights organization called COC Netherlands, called the motion a breakthrough. It calls for exactly what the refugees facing abuse asked for: a safe place: “What’s the use of having a roof over your head if you’re too afraid to leave your room because of all the bullying and harassment?”

Here’s a look at some of the numbers behind the violence gay refugees face as they seek safety in the Netherlands. Read more via Vocativ 

South Africa: Minister of Justice calls on Africa to respect LGBTI people

South Africa’s Minister of Justice has called on African nations to accept the human rights of LGBTI people and to change their attitudes towards sexual orientation and gender identity.

Delegates from across the continent participated in the “Africa Regional Seminar on Finding Practical Solutions for Addressing Violence and Discrimination Against Persons Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression.” The seminar brought together officials, human rights groups, international and regional bodies, civil society and academics.

In his speech, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Advocate Michael Masutha said that the seminar had its roots in the resolution adopted by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in May 2014 condemning violence and other human rights violations against the LGBTI community. The historic resolution, while largely ignored by African governments, also condemned attacks by states against people on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Masutha said that at the heart of efforts to protect LGBTI Africans from “horrendous violations” was the understanding “that we must change societal attitudes”.  Read more via MambaOnline

Australia’s first out gay MP uses maiden speech to speak out for gay people

Australia's first openly gay MP in the House of Representatives used his maiden speech to denounce homophobia and people who “peddle prejudice”.

Trent Zimmerman won the seat of North Sydney in a by-election after his predecessor, former federal Treasurer Joe Hockey, quit politics in 2015. After he was sworn into parliament a month ago, Zimmerman vowed to work for the rights of LGBTI people and for the issues important in his electorate.

At 12.30pm today, he rose to deliver his first speech as an MP, flanked by marriage equality advocate and far north Queensland Liberal MP Warren Entsch who wore a rainbow tie in support. Zimmerman’s speech proved to be popular, going viral and trending on Twitter nationally for more than five hours at the time of print.  Read more via Star Observer

US: Transgender students and ‘Bathroom Laws’ in South Dakota and beyond

The South Dakota Legislature approved a bill this month that would require public school students to use bathrooms and other facilities that correspond to their biological sex, defined in the bill as “a person’s chromosomes and anatomy as identified at birth.”

Under the measure, schools would need to find other accommodations for transgender students, whose gender identity does not correspond with the biological sex they were born with. If the legislation is signed by Dennis Daugaard, the state’s Republican governor, South Dakota will become the first state to enact such a law, and transgender students, their parents and their supporters criticize it as discriminatory.

On the other side of the debate, some schools say allowing transgender students to use the bathroom of their choice could violate the privacy of other students.  Read more via New York Times

Indonesia's Defence Minister threatens 'warfare' against gay community

Indonesia's gay community has come under attack, with the country's Defence Minister labelling the community a "threat" and likening fighting it to "a kind of modern warfare". Ministers and religious leaders have denounced homosexuality, blocked lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) websites and emboldened hardliners launching anti-gay raids.

When a minister criticised counselling services for gay students at a university last month, it triggered a heated media debate and was the start of what activists say has been a sustained assault on gay rights.   Read more via ABC
 

Australia: Safe Schools Coalition: what is the Christian Right afraid of?

At the instigation of conservative Liberal senator Cory Bernardi, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has requested an investigation into the Safe Schools Coalition. In doing so, Turnbull has given voice to, and legitimised, discredited and prejudiced views that inclusive sexuality education will turn kids gay.

Safe Schools is a world-leading, evidence-based program to make schools safe environments for same-sex-attracted, intersex and gender-diverse students, staff and families. 

Sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and intersex status are protected grounds in international human rights legislation on education. They are also protected in Australian national legislation. Australia’s work opposing homophobia and transphobia in schools is internationally celebrated, and featured in UNESCO best-practice documentation. This begs the question: on what grounds should we be investigating this program? 

Read more via the Conversation