Dear Mr. President,
According to the information received from reliable sources, on January 23, 2006, the ECOSOC Committee on NGOs rejected the applications for consultative status of the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) and the Danish National Association for Gays and Lesbians (Landsforeningen for Bøsser og Lesbiske - LBL), by votes of 10 in favour of denying the applications to 5 against, with 3 abstentions, in both cases, without providing the organisations with reasons for the refusal. The Committee took those decisions after motions for deferral of the debate were rejected by votes of 10 against to 5 in favour, with 3 abstentions.
Moreover, on May 16 and 17, 2006, the NGO Committee also dismissed the application for consultative status of two other organisations advancing human rights for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people, namely the Lesbian and Gay Federation in Germany (Lesben- und Schwulenverband in Deutschland - LSVD) and ILGA-Europe, in a recorded vote of 9 in favour, 7 against and 2 abstentions.
Finally, on May 12, 2006, the Committee left pending the application of the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Quebec (Coalition Gaie et Lesbienne du Québec). On May 18, 2006, a final deferral concerned the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Quebec, and was a result of the NGO’s having provided answers only in French.
In July 2006, the full 53 member ECOSOC will consider the rejection of ILGA, LBL, LSVD and ILGA-Europe by the NGO Committee as it considers the Committee’s report.
As no ground was given for the rejection of the first four applications, the Observatory fears that these rejections, as well as the deferral of the application of the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Quebec, might have been motivated by the work of those NGOs in favour of homosexual rights. The Observatory recalls the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of United Nations on December, 9, 1998, in particular its article 1 that states that "Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels", and its preamble, in which the General Assembly stressed "that all members of the international community shall fulfil, jointly and separately, their solemn obligation to promote and encourage respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction of any kind, including distinctions based on race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status", reaffirmed "the particular importance of achieving international cooperation to fulfil this obligation according to the Charter", and reiterated "that all human rights and fundamental freedoms are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated and should be promoted and implemented in a fair and equitable manner [...]".
The Observatory calls upon ECOSOC to invite the NGO Committee to consider the applications of ILGA, LBL, ILGA-Europe and LSVD on their merits, in accordance with usual practice, and asks the Committee to give full and fair consideration to the pending application of the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Quebec.
In the hope that you will take these considerations and requests into account,
We remain,
Sidiki KABA Eric SOTTAS
President of FIDH Director of OMCT