ATTN GAFCON: Akinola/Nigeria Orombi/Uganda, U.N. General Assembly AFFIRMS RIGHTS for ALL & condemns violence, harassment, discrimination, exclusion...

United Nations General Assembly Statement Affirms Rights for All!

66 States Condemn Violations Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

(New York, December 18, 2008) – ¨In a powerful victory for the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 66 nations at the UN General Assembly today supported a groundbreaking statement confirming that international human rights protections include sexual orientation and gender identity. It is the first time that a statement condemning rights abuses against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people has been presented in the General Assembly.¨


Notorious fear/hate-mongering LGBT EXCLUDER and Anglican Bishop Greg Venables of Argentina VIOLATES "the principle of non-discrimination, which requires that human rights apply equally to every human being regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity" that ARGENTINA and The Southern Cone of South America promoted and SUPPORTED at The United Nations. Venables has few followers in Argentina and has taken to recruiting anti-LGBT Episcopalians and Anglicans in North America (which is forbidden legally by Canons of his Southern Cone Anglican Province).

¨The statement drew unprecedented support from five continents, including six African nations. ARGENTINA read the statement before the General Assembly. A cross-regional group of states coordinated the drafting of the statement, also including BRAZIL, Croatia, France, Gabon, Japan, the Netherlands, and Norway.

The 66 countries reaffirmed "the principle of non-discrimination, which requires that human rights apply equally to every human being regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity." They stated they are "deeply concerned by violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms based on sexual orientation or gender identity," and said that "violence, harassment, discrimination, exclusion, stigmatization and prejudice are directed against persons in all countries in the world because of sexual orientation or gender identity."

Archbishop Pete Akinola and +Martyn Minns of The Anglican Church of NIGERIA whose House of Bishops support the arresting, punishing/jailing and persecuting of LGBT people, their friends/supporters, their families and their ¨Hooligan children¨ who assemble together in PUBLIC or wish to OPENLY worship at Church together with other Anglicans.

Bishop Akinola also refuses to answer questions in regard to his possible role in the instigating of the Massacre of Yelwa where 600+ Muslims were murdered...he only smiled when interviewed by journalist Griswold of The Atlantic Monthly.The Massacre of Yelwa, read it all, click here:

¨The statement condemned killings, torture, arbitrary arrest, and "deprivation of economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to health." The participating countries urged all nations to "promote and protect human rights of all persons, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity," and to end all criminal penalties against people because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.¨


¨According to calculations by ILGA (the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex Association) and other organizations, more than six dozen countries still have laws against consensual sex between adults of the same sex. The majority of these laws were left behind by colonial rulers Alien Legacy Reports, click here:. The UN Human Rights Committee, which interprets the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), a core UN treaty, held in a historic 1994 decision that such laws are rights violations – and that human rights law forbids discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity happen regularly around the world. For example:


¨I was outraged to learn this morning that two men were assaulted at Kossuth Place and Bushwick Avenue in Brooklyn, and especially horrified to learn that anti-LGBT and anti-Latino slurs were used by one or more of the assailants - raising this event to the level of a hate crime.¨ Murder in Brooklyn New York, read it all, click here:

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori of The Episcopal Church, The United States, is in full support of The United Nations statement which condemned killings, torture, arbitrary arrest, and "deprivation of economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to health." In addition, Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori enthusiastically supports the WELCOMING and FULL INCLUSION of LGBT Christians at all levels of Episcopal Churchlife.

¨In the United States, Amnesty International has documented serious patterns of police abuse against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, including incidents amounting to torture and ill-treatment. The United States refused to sign the General Assembly statement.¨

Anglican Bishop Mouneer H. Anis, EGYPT, LGBT excluder and demonizer of Lesbian and Gay Christians/others and GAFCON Anglican Communion destructionist accomplice.

¨In Egypt, Human Rights Watch documented a massive crackdown on men suspected of homosexual conduct between 2001-2004, in which hundreds or thousands of men were arrested and tortured. EGYPT actively opposed the General Assembly statement.

Bishop Benjamin Nzimbi of KENYA is another GAFCON Anglican Communion destructionist. +Nzimbi supports the marginalizing of LGBT Christians/others and condemns and forbids Gay or Lesbian Christians to serve or OPENLY participate at all levels of Kenyan Churchlife.

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission has documented how, in many African countries, sodomy laws and prejudice deny rights protections to Africans engaged in same-sex practices amid the HIV/AIDS pandemic – and can actually criminalize outreach to affected groups.


The Murder of Makwam, read it all, click here:
The signatories overcame intense opposition from a group of governments that regularly try to block UN attention to violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Only 57 states signed an alternative text promoted by the Organization of the Islamic Conference. While affirming the "principles of non-discrimination and equality," they claimed that universal human rights did not include "the attempt to focus on the rights of certain persons."

Pope Benedict approved of the ¨basic human rights for all¨ concept.

¨At first, the Holy See had voiced strong opposition to the General Assembly statement. Its opposition sparked severe criticism by human rights defenders worldwide. In a significant reversal, however, the Holy See indicated to the General Assembly today that it called for repeal of criminal penalties for homosexual conduct.

"The Holy See continues to advocate that every sign of unjust discrimination toward homosexual persons should be avoided and urges States to do away with criminal penalties against them.¨

This year is the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the General Assembly statement reaffirms the reach and breadth of UDHR principles. The statement is non-binding, but restates what UN human rights bodies have repeatedly said: that no one should face rights violations because of their sexual orientation and gender identity.¨


Desmond Tutu, The Anglican Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, winner of the Nobel Prize for Peace and supporter of Human Rights protection/inclusiveness for LGBT Christians and ALL others.


Ms. Navanetham Pillay UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

¨Navanetham Pillay, the UN high commissioner for human rights, strongly supported the statement. In a videotaped message, she cited South Africa's 1996 decision to protect sexual orientation in its Constitution. She pointed to the "task and challenge to move beyond a debate on whether all human beings have rights," to "secure the climate for implementation."


¨Since the Human Rights Committee's landmark decision in 1994, United Nations experts have repeatedly acted against abuses that target lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, including killings, torture, rape, violence, disappearances, and discrimination in many areas of life. UN treaty bodies have called on states to end discrimination in law and policy.¨

The Bishop of Rochester, Church of England and leading GAFCON Anglican Communion destructionist, Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, is against including LGBT Anglicans at all levels of Churchlife.

¨Other international bodies have also opposed violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, including the Council of Europe and the European Union. In 2008, all 34 member countries of the Organization of American States unanimously approved a declaration affirming that human rights protections extend to sexual orientation and gender identity.¨


The Anglican Archbishop of UGANDA, Henri Orombi, has recently initiated a ¨witch-hunt¨ against LGBT people at ALL levels of Society in Uganda and needs to NOTE, and act, immediately on the principles of ¨non-discrimination and violation of fundamental freedoms¨ and STOP the instigating of HATE CRIMES against his fellow citizens. In addition, Orombi is attempting to poach on and/or steal Episcopal Church property in the United States of America by cultivating anti-lgbt Christians who would demonize and marginalize other Christians at various levels of Churchlife where they have been ¨called¨ to serve. Orombi believes that Homosexuality was imported to Uganda by foreigners.

¨Earlier in the day, the General Assembly also adopted a resolution condemning extrajudicial executions, which contained a reference opposing killings based on sexual orientation. UGANDA moved to delete that reference, but the General Assembly rejected this by 78-60.

The signatories to the General Assembly statement are:

Albania, Andorra, ARGENTINA, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, BOLIVIA, Bosnia and Herzegovina, BRAZIL, Bulgaria, CANADA, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, CHILE, COLOMBIA, Croatia, CUBA, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, ECUADOR, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guinea-Bissau, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mauritius, MEXICO, Montenegro, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, NICARAGUA, Norway, PARAGUAY, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, SPAIN, Sweden, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Timor-Leste, UNITED KINGDOM, URUGUAY, and VENEZUELA.¨

Human Rights Watch, read it all, click here:
For more information, please contact the following organizations issuing this statement:

Amnesty International (in New York, Kate Sheill: +44-79-0439-8439 )

ARC International (in Canada, Kim Vance: +1-902-488-6404 )

Center for Women's Global Leadership (in New York, Cynthia Rothschild: +1-917- 318-3593)

COC Netherlands (in New York: Björn van Roozendaal +31-62-255-8300

Global Rights (in Washington, DC, Stefano Fabeni: +1-202-741-5049 )

Human Rights Watch (in New York, Scott Long: +1-646-641-5655 )

ILGA (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transexual and Intersex Association (in New York, Renato Sabbadini: +39-335-60-67-158 )

Inter-LGBT France (in New York, Philippe Colomb: +33-68-985-3109 )

International Committee for IDAHO (International Day Against Homophobia) (in New York, Louis-Georges Tin: +33-61-945-4552 )

IGLHRC (in New York, Hossein Alizadeh: +1-212-430-6016 )

Thanks to The United Nations Security Council and The General Assembly
Thanks to Human Rights Watch
Thanks to Navanetham Pillay
Thanks to Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Thanks to Pope Benedict
Thanks to Spatters (who brought this wonderful breakthrough to my attention quickly)
Thanks to Flickr Photosharing
Thanks to Episcopal Cafe/The Lead
Thanks to The Atlantic Monthly Magazine
Thanks to Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori