Today is International Human Rights Day

According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights (Article 1). Everyone shall have all the rights and freedoms declared in the document without distinction of any kind, regardless of race, colour, sex, language, religion, political and other beliefs, national or social origin, property, class, and other status (Article 2).

The 2024 International Human Rights Day theme is “Our Rights, Our Future, Right Now”, emphasising the urgency of the struggle for human rights in the face of global crises. Unfortunately, over the past year, our region has experienced a decline in human rights protections, particularly for Trans and LGBTIQ communities, due to the adoption of anti-trans and anti-LGBTIQ laws in neighbouring countries and the proliferation of anti-gender narratives within society. This year, Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO, as a community-based organisation for Trans, LGBIQ, and sex workers, continues to advocate for and protect their rights while documenting violations. Regardless of the equality established by the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and international law, Trans LGBIQ and sex workers in Armenia continue to face discrimination, oppression, and violence in various ways of their lives. This year, we witnessed a huge wave of hate speech, threats, and death calls directed at the trans community, following the announcement by transgender activist Diana Ghzroyan that she was going to represent Armenia in an international beauty contest. We are confident that the situation would have been different if the 2024 revision of the RA Law on the Elimination of Discrimination had included sexual orientation and gender identity as protected characteristics as recommended by organizations working in this field. The lack of specific legal protections, anti-discrimination law, and political will to achieve change exacerbates the vulnerability of community members, perpetuating a climate of impunity.

Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO continues to stand at the forefront of protecting Trans LGBIQ rights, both by providing legal assistance and by regularly conducting campaigns to raise awareness about human rights. In 2024, the organization provided 407 legal consultations through law enforcement agencies, courts, the NGO’s community safe center, and via telephone. This year, 39 cases of hate crimes, hate speech, and discrimination, along with 27 cases of violations by the police and investigative bodies, were filed with Right Side NGO. Since 2023, 10 court cases have remained pending. Lawyers have represented clients in police and investigative bodies, participating in 51 interrogations, while 16 criminal cases are still ongoing. Additionally, two cases of strategic litigation conducted by the organization’s legal department are currently under review by the European Court of Human Rights.

International Human Rights Day serves as another vital opportunity to unite our voices and urge the Government of the Republic of Armenia to ensure comprehensive protection of the rights of Trans, LGBIQ, and sex workers, with a particular focus on:

– take appropriate legal steps to ensure the legal gender recognition and name change of transgender persons, based on the right to self-determination, and spiritual and physical integrity, eliminating the need for coercive medical interventions.

– update the draft law on equality to include the prohibition of discrimination based on gender identity and gender self-expression.

– to ensure by law the protection of transgender persons from hate crimes and hate speech, to document incidents, and to submit reports to other OSCE participating countries.

– To make the current curricula in the RA educational system inclusive from the point of view of the rights of transgender persons and to teach inclusiveness, sexuality, and gender issues.

– implement appropriate measures to fairly investigate all cases of violence, hatred, and discrimination against transgender people.

– to stop the promotion of hatred, discrimination, and ridicule towards transgender people through the politicization of LGBT issues