This Friday, 17 June 2011 Member States of the Human Rights Council will vote on a resolution on human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. A copy of the resolution can be found here.

This historic resolution, presented by South Africa, affirms the universality of human rights, and notes concern about acts of violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. It requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a study on violence and discrimination on these grounds, and calls for a panel discussion to be held at the Human Rights Council to discuss the findings of the study in a constructive and transparent manner, and to consider appropriate follow-up. A copy of the text of the resolution is attached.

We need your help today to ensure this resolution is adopted! If passed, this will be the first UN resolution ever to bring specific focus to human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Let’s work together to send a clear message that killings, violence, rape and criminal sanctions directed against those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex are not acceptable – ever.

Please take action today to urge your government to support the resolution. Only Members of the Council (listed below) may vote, although non-Member States can still “cosponsor” the resolution to demonstrate their support.

Only Human Rights Council Members will be able to vote on the resolution. There are currently 46 voting Members of the Human Rights Council. It is their votes which will determine whether the resolution is adopted or rejected. The United Kingdom is expected to vote in favour.

If your State is not a voting Member of the Human Rights Council, they may still cosponsor the resolution. “Cosponsorship” means they may endorse the resolution to demonstrate their support, even though they cannot vote.  The more cross-regional cosponsors the resolution has, the more it will encourage voting Members to also demonstrate their support.  This is particularly important in underrepresented regions, such as Africa and Asia.

How do I contact my government?

The most important contact is your government’s Foreign Ministry in your capital.  Contact details for the Foreign Ministry of each country can be found at http://www.ediplomat.com/dc/foreign_ministries.htm

It is also useful to copy any message to your country’s Ambassador in Geneva.  Contact details for the Geneva missions of each State can be found at http://tinyurl.com/t2cwt

What do I tell them?

Thank them for any past support they have demonstrated for sexual orientation and gender identity issues, or for principles of human rights more generally, and emphasize that this is a very straightforward resolution recognising that all human beings are entitled to be protected from serious human rights violations like killings, violence, criminal sanctions and torture, and requesting further information and transparent dialogue on these issues.

Underline that the resolution creates no new rights, but simply seeks the application of existing international standards to those who face human rights violations because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Encourage them to support the resolution, and ask for a specific response to your request. You may also wish to request a meeting to discuss the matter further.

Please keep us informed of your country’s response.  A coalition of NGOs is closely monitoring this initiative, and may be reached at hrc17@arc-international.net