The human rights situation in Cambodia is facing growing criticisms both within the country and from an increasingly alarmed international community. After a series of flagrant violations against basic human rights a feeling of incertitude regarding the direction the country is emerging,sometimes comparing the situation to a newborn Burma.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Bosnia and Herzegovina may face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female forms of same-sex sexual activity are legal in Bosnia and Herzegovina. However,households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Cambodia face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Cambodia. Cambodia provides no anti-discrimination protections for LGBT people,nor does it prohibit hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) rights in Cyprus have evolved in recent years,but LGBT people still face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female expressions of same-sex sexual activity were decriminalised in 1998,and civil unions which grant several of the rights and benefits of marriage have been legal since December 2015. Conversion therapy was banned in Cyprus in May 2023. However,adoption rights in Cyprus are reserved for heterosexual couples only.
OutRight International (OutRight) is an LGBTIQ human rights non-governmental organization that addresses human rights violations and abuses against lesbian,gay,bisexual,transgender and intersex people. OutRight International documents human rights discrimination and abuses based on their sexual orientation,gender identity,gender expression and sex characteristics in partnership with activists,advocates,media,NGOs and allies on a local,regional,national and international level. OutRight International holds consultative status with ECOSOC.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Albania face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents,although LGBT people are protected under comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation. Both male and female same-gender sexual activities have been legal in Albania since 1995,but households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-gender couples,with same-sex unions not being recognized in the country in any form.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Armenia face legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents,due in part to the lack of laws prohibiting discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity and in part to prevailing negative attitudes about LGBT persons throughout society.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Azerbaijan face significant challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity has been legal in Azerbaijan since 1 September 2000. Nonetheless,discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity are not banned in the country and same-sex marriage is not recognized.
Vitit Muntarbhorn is an international human rights expert and professor of law at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok,Thailand. Muntarbhorn was designated in September 2016 as the first UN Independent Expert on violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity by the Human Rights Council before succeeded by Victor Madrigal-Borloz in 2018.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) rights in Nepal have evolved significantly during the 21st century,though barriers to full equality still exist within the nation. In 2007,Nepal repealed the laws against gay sex and introduced several laws which explicitly protected "gender and sexual minorities". The Nepalese Constitution now recognizes LGBT rights as fundamental rights. On 28 June 2023,a single judge bench of Justice Til Prasad Shrestha issued a historic interim order directing the government to make necessary arrangements to "temporarily register" the marriages of "non-traditional couples and sexual minorities". The full bench of the Supreme Court has yet to deliver a final verdict. The first same-sex marriage of a trans woman and a cisgender gay man occurred in November 2023. Nepal will be the first least developed country and the first in South Asia to legalize same-sex marriage,and the second in Asia after Taiwan.
Discussions of LGBT rights at the United Nations have included resolutions and joint statements in the United Nations General Assembly and the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC),attention to the expert-led human rights mechanisms,as well as by the UN Agencies.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Guinea-Bissau face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Guinea-Bissau,but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in East Timor face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in East Timor,but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex married couples.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Lesotho face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Lesotho does not recognise same-sex marriages or civil unions,nor does it ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.
The Yogyakarta Principles is a document about human rights in the areas of sexual orientation and gender identity that was published as the outcome of an international meeting of human rights groups in Yogyakarta,Indonesia,in November 2006. The principles were supplemented and expanded in 2017 to include new grounds of gender expression and sex characteristics and a number of new principles. However,the Principles have never been accepted by the United Nations (UN) and the attempt to make gender identity and sexual orientation new categories of non-discrimination has been repeatedly rejected by the General Assembly,the UN Human Rights Council and other UN bodies.
Lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) people in Kiribati face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Male homosexuality is illegal in Kiribati with a penalty of up to 14 years in prison,but the law is not enforced. Female homosexuality is legal,but lesbians may face violence and discrimination. Despite this,employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation has been prohibited since 2015.
The right to sexuality incorporates the right to express one's sexuality and to be free from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. Specifically,it relates to the human rights of people of diverse sexual orientations,including lesbian,gay,bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people,and the protection of those rights,although it is equally applicable to heterosexuality. The right to sexuality and freedom from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation is based on the universality of human rights and the inalienable nature of rights belonging to every person by virtue of being human.
Intersex people are born with sex characteristics that "do not fit the typical definitions for male or female bodies". They are substantially more likely to identify as lesbian,gay,bisexual,or transgender (LGBT) than endosex people,an estimated 52% identifying as non-heterosexual and 8.5% to 20% experiencing gender dysphoria. Although many intersex people are heterosexual and cisgender,this overlap and "shared experiences of harm arising from dominant societal sex and gender norms" has led to intersex people often being included under the LGBT umbrella,with the acronym sometimes expanded to LGBTI. Some intersex activists and organisations have criticised this inclusion as distracting from intersex-specific issues such as involuntary medical interventions.
Monica Tabengwa is a lawyer and researcher from Botswana who works for Pan-Africa ILGA and Human Rights Watch (HRW). She is a specialist on LGBT issues in sub-Saharan Africa. Tabengwa has written on violence and discrimination faced by LGBT people in sub-Saharan Africa.
The United Nations Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is a United Nations Independent Expert appointed by the body's Human Rights Council under its special procedures mechanism. The Independent Expert's Mandate is to examine,monitor,advise,and publicly report on matters related to human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
