This is a blog is related to my academic work in the International Academic Forum on SOGIESC Law but meant to serve anyone who wants to contribute to improve the protection of human rights worldwide. It is intended to keep interested readers informed about legal developments relating to sexual orientation, gender expression and identity and sex characteristics (SOGIESC). Hopefully, it will make it easier to find correct legal information about the developments in all regions of the world and, in particular, with regard to international law.
Switzerland: Level of LGBTQ abuse stays constant but violence decreases Photo by Vijay Putra on Pexels.com An organisation representing the LGBTQ community in Switzerland says complaints of abusive behaviour have not declined, despite the law against hate crimes currently being tightened. This content was published on May 17, 2021 – 14:01 May 17, 2021 – […]
USA: Department of Health and Human Services affirms nondiscrimination protections in health care for more than 13 million LGBT people
HS affirms nondiscrimination protections in health care for more than 13 million LGBT people
On Monday 10 May 2021, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reinstated federal protections from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in health care. The regulation will provide protection from discrimination for an estimated 13 million LGBT people ages 13 and older, including more than 1.5 million transgender people.
LGBT people experience health disparities compared to non-LGBT people and often lack access to health care. Recent research from the Williams Institute found that many LGB and transgender people have underlying health conditions that could increase their risk for COVID-19-related illness, including asthma, diabetes, heart disease, and HIV. In addition, discrimination against LGBT people in health care settings is well documented and takes many forms, including outright denials and substandard care.
USA: LGBQ people six times more likely than general public to be stopped by police
New research from the Williams Institute finds more LGBQ adults than people in the general United States population have had interactions with the police, including being stopped by police and seeking help from police.
Six times as many LGBQ people as people in the general population were stopped by the police in public spaces, and more than twice as many were stopped by the police while driving. Nearly seven times as many LGBQ people were stopped by the police for reasons that did not involve a vehicle. In addition, twice as many LGBQ people as the general public had sought help from the police.
Hungary: Amendment of the provisions on legal recognition of gender
The Constitutional Court annulled the provision of the Registry Act that the new rules (from came i2020) shall be applied to ongoing legal gender recognition proceedings as well.
Switzerland – Federal Administrative Court: Hardship case: residence permit extended for a transgender Mauritian national
The Federal Administrative Court has approved the extension of the residence permit for a transgender Mauritian national for important personal reasons. Since her country of origin does not recognise transgender persons, the Court deemed that the appellant’s reintegration and medical follow-up would be in jeopardy if she were to return to Mauritius.
Under Swiss law, a foreign national whose union with a Swiss national has lasted less than three years is entitled to have their residence permit extended for important personal reasons, for example if their reintegration in their country of origin is in jeopardy.
In the case brought before the Federal Administrative Court (FAC), a Mauritian national, in a romantic relationship with her Swiss partner, entered into a registered partnership of same-sex partners in October 2014. The Mauritian national thus obtained a residence permit in their canton of residence. In 2016, the Mauritian national started a gender transitioning process of which her partner initially supported. However, as the transitioning progressed, the latter found it increasingly difficult to accept. As a result, the couple separated in June 2017, and finally the registered partnership was dissolved in December 2017. In September 2018, the population office of the appellant’s canton of residence declared itself in favour of the Mauritian national’s continued stay in Switzerland despite the couple’s separation. For its part, the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) considered that the situation of transgender persons in Mauritius was not sufficiently serious to justify an extension of stay. Therefore, it denied the concerned party’s application and set a time limit for her to leave the country. In May 2019, the Mauritian national lodged an appeal against this decision with the FAC.
A difficult return home In Mauritius, gender reassignment, be it medical or administrative, is prohibited. It follows that if the appellant were to return to her country, she would not be recognised as a woman. Nor is it certain that she would be admitted to the country since her identity and appearance no longer match those on her passport. The Mauritian national is undergoing relatively heavy medical treatment and psychotherapy which she would not have access to in Mauritius. Furthermore, in Mauritius, transgender people are regularly subject to discrimination and are rejected by their family. The FAC therefore deems this a case of personal hardship within the meaning of the Foreign Nationals and Integration Act.
Currently on welfare support The appellant was previously employed in the medical field. However, her gender transitioning eventually prevented the pursuit of her career. Since 2017, she receives welfare support. During this time, she has followed several vocational training courses and integration measures, including a reintegration programme, which could lead to an employment contract of several months’ duration. Considering the appellant’s efforts, the FAC believes that her situation is likely to change and improve in the future. Therefore, the conditions for revoking her residence permit are not fulfilled at this time. The Court underscores, however, that if the appellant were to continue to rely on social welfare, her situation would have to be regularly reassessed.
For all these reasons, the FAC allowed the appeal and approved the extension of the appellant’s residence permit. This judgment may be appealed to the Federal Supreme Court.
USA: Biden administration reinstates LGBTQ healthcare protections denied by Trump
US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra announced on Monday that healthcare providers are prohibited from discriminating against gay and transgender individuals, reversing a controversial Donald Trump-era policy.
HHS’s decision allows the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to extend the interpretation of Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act and Title IX’s prohibitions on discrimination based on sex to include discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Such interpretation allows OCR to exert the enforcement mechanisms available under Title IX when applying section 1557 in healthcare discrimination cases.
The Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, is a law signed by former US President Barack Obama in 2010 and designed to extend health coverage to millions of uninsured Americans. In June, HHS under Trump proposed a rule consisting of a rewrite of section 1557 which would strike down protections for LGBTQ patients. The new position of HHS under the Joe Biden administration represents a reversal of the reversal.
The new policy echoes the US Supreme Court decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, where the majority held the plain meaning of “because of sex” in Title VII necessarily included discrimination because of sexual orientation and gender identity. According to the court, gender identity and sexual orientation are inexorably intertwined with sex.
Becerra said in a statement, “The Supreme Court has made clear that people have a right not to be discriminated against on the basis of sex and receive equal treatment under the law, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation. That’s why today HHS announced it will act on related reports of discrimination.”
Dr. Rachel Levine, Assistant Secretary for Health, added, “No one should be discriminated against when seeking medical services because of who they are.”
Gender-based persecution as a crime against humanity: A milestone for LGBTI rights before the Colombian Special Jurisdiction for Peace
by Susann Aboueldahab (PhD Candidate and Research Assistant at the Department for Foreign and International Criminal Law and at the Study Center for Latin American Criminal and Criminal Procedural Law (CEDPAL) at the Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Germany).
On 14 April 2021 the Colombian Special Jurisdiction for Peace (Jurisdicción Especial para la Paz, JEP) broke new ground: It accredited five LGBTI persons as victims of the Colombian armed conflict and resolved that their gender-based persecution might have amounted to a crime against humanity. The decision is pioneering for two reasons: First, the JEP declared its jurisdiction over this international crime for the first time. Second, the JEP resolved that gender-based persecution covers sexual orientation and gender identity, setting an important precedent for international criminal law.
Parution d’un ouvrage de Thierry Delessert sur l’histoire des homosexualités en Suisse Link: https://www.seismoverlag.ch/en/daten/sortons-du-ghetto/ Parution d’un ouvrage de Thierry Delessert sur l’histoire des homosexualités en Suisse — LGBTI Recht in der Schweiz – Droit LGBTI en Suisse – by Professor Andreas R Ziegler Préface Cet ouvrage exploite plusieurs fonds d’archives et poursuit les analyses historiques d’une […] […]
International and Comparative SOGIESC Law - Professor Andreas R Ziegler 