Statement by the UN LGBTI Core Group
Delivered by H.E. MRS. PAULA NARVÁEZ OJEDA, Permanent Representative of CHILE to the UNITED NATIONS in New York
November 4, 2024
Chairperson,
Mr. Independent Expert,
I have the honor to participate in this interactive dialogue on behalf of the Member States of the UN LGBTI Core Group, an informal cross regional group established in 2008. [1]
We strongly appreciate your report, and we are thankful for the outstanding work done.
We are pleased that your report has received contributions from 56 stakeholders from all around the world, including States, national human rights institutions, civil society organisations and academics.
Mr. Independent Expert,
Your report raises awareness on how the human rights of LGBTI persons can be violated in the context of electoral participation due to their real or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity, and how their situation can be worsened due to other axes of exclusion.
One of your recommendations is to increase efforts to collect data on barriers to participation for LGBT persons as voters, candidates, election officials and observers. Could you provide examples of successful strategies implemented by States or organisations to collect such data?
Mr. Independent Expert,
As you have rightly pointed out in your report, violence, hate speech online and offline, multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, and disparaging rhetoric—particularly during election campaigns—are significant obstacles faced by LGBTI persons when exercising their political rights, leading to the silencing of many of their voices and ultimately undermining their ability to fully participate in electoral processes. And we believe democracy itself is weakened by such exclusion.
We recognize that electoral management institutions can play a crucial role in ensuring that LGBTI voters and candidates are able to exercise their political rights, in line with international human rights law.
Finally, we emphasize that adequate legal and procedural protections are essential to safeguard the political rights of LGBTI persons, especially during election campaigns. Moreover, it is crucial that electoral frameworks actively address these obstacles so that their complaints are swiftly addressed.
Thank you very much.
[1] The group is co-chaired by Argentina and the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and includes Albania, Australia, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Honduras, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Mexico, Nepal, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Peru, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Timor Leste, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United States of America, Uruguay, the European Union, as well as the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the non-governmental organizations Human Rights Watch and Outright International.