UN refugee agency seeks to protect displaced gays, lesbians
“The need to ensure that the rights of LGBTI people are respected has recently received increased attention and support from UN agencies, States, and the broader humanitarian and human rights community,” Assistant High Commissioner for Protection Volker Turk says of the measures which focus on practical guidance for staff and partner organizations.
“However, despite significant progress in this effort, discrimination against LGBTI persons persists, and their international protection needs often go unmet,” he added in a news release.
“UNHCR [High Commissioner for Refugees] is committed to protecting the rights of LGBTI persons of concern, and will continue to take targeted actions to build the capacity of staff and partners to this end. The training package we have developed is a significant step in that direction.”
The programme, developed jointly with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and funded by the United States Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migration, covers relevant terminology, international law, communication, operational protection, conducting interviews, durable solutions, health, and refugee status determination.
It encompasses sexual orientation and gender identity, the particular protection risks affecting displaced LGBTI people, specific means to address them and will result in better delivery of protection to LGBTI persons of concern by UNHCR and its partners, the agency said.
Photo: OHCHR/Joseph Smida/www.justearthnews.com
Support Our Journalism
We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism
IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.
