Prof. Stephen Whittle

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• Prof. Stephen Whittle
• The School of Law, Manchester Metropolitan
  University
• s.t.whittle_at_mmu.ac.uk

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• The First Magna Carta of the Homosexual Rights
  Has Been Released in Yogyakarta, Indonesia
• a Milestone for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and
  Transgender Rights (Human Rights Watch)
• The Yogyakarta Principles are revolutionary
  because they visualize how bad the situation in
  the world is for gays, lesbians, bisexuals,
  transgender and intersex people (Boris Dittrich)

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Yogyakarta Principles

• a response to the well-documented patterns of
  abuse
• Intention to outline a set of international
  principles relating to Sexual Orientation
  Gender Identity
• Because they did not exist already
• Because the idea of them is constantly refuted
• Because we are constantly refuted

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the Application of International Human Rights Law
in Relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender
Identity

• extrajudicial executions,
• violence and torture,
• repression of free speech and assembly,
• refusal to allow to adopt or foster, removal of
  access to children
• and discrimination in work, health, education,
  access to justice, and immigration.

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• I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? hath not a Jew
  hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections,
  passions? fed with the same food, hurt with the
  same weapons, subject to the same diseases,
  healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by
  the same winter and summer, as a Christian is? If
  you prick us, do we not bleed?

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a universal guide to human rights which affirm
binding international legal standards with which
all States must comply

• With which all States must comply

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They promise a different future where all people
born free and equal in dignity and rights can
fulfil that precious birthright
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address a broad range of human rights standards
and their application to issues of sexual
orientation and gender identity

• their Application

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WHY?

• The ongoing human rights abuses experienced by
  LGBT I people
• The ongoing abuses experienced by LGBT I people
• The failure of the international community to
  POLICE their own
• The response is fragmented, and inconsistent
• it falls by the wayside when it comes to foreign
  policy objectives

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29 Principles and Additional Recommendations

• PRINCIPLE 3. The Right to recognition before the
  law
• PRINCIPLE 8. The Right to a Fair Trial
• PRINCIPLE 10. The Right to Freedom from Torture
  and Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
  Punishment.
• PRINCIPLE 13. The right to social security and to
  other social protection measures 
• PRINCIPLE 14. The right to an adequate standard
  of living
• PRINCIPLE 18. Protection from Medical Abuses
• PRINCIPLE 23. The Right to seek Asylum
• PRINCIPLE 24. The Right to Found a Family
• PRINCIPLE 27. The Right to Promote Human Rights

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P3. Right to recognition before the
lawP10. Freedom from Torture and Cruel, Inhuman
or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

• Transsexual Prisoner wants sex swop reversal (The
  Daily Mirror, 2006)
• Many of the UKs Trans Prison population are
  spending their sentences in a sole occupancy
  room, next to the Psychiatric Unit
• It is not solitary meet other trans prisoners 1
  hour a day
• The Valueless Gender Recognitions certificate

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P 13. The right to social security and to other
social protection measures 

• KB v NHS Pensions Agency (C-117/01) ECJ 2005
• Linda Grant v. UK (Case 32570/03) ECHR 2006
• Sarah Margaret Richards v Secretary of State for
  Work and Pensions (Case C-423/04) ECJ 2006
• 20 trans pensioners are still fighting

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P 23. The Right to seek Asylum

• UK the Immigration and Nationality refuse to
  develop a policy on Trans asylum seekers
• Each case has to be worked on separately by teams
  of volunteers
• Yet nobody has been turned away who has obtained
  help

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P24. The Right to Found a Family

• It seems only 1 Trans person has been allowed to
  adopt
• She is single
• It is an inter-family adoption
• Those trans men and their partners who try to
  adopt come up against systematic law breaking by
  social care workers and never get past the
  assessment stage

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Inciting hatred against Trans people

• Most Homophobia is Transphobic
• Trans people self-protect and behave defensively
  because they are living in fear.
• 73 of respondents experienced harassment
• 10 were victims of threatening behaviour when
  out in public spaces
• 47 of trans people do not use public social or
  leisure facilities for fear of violence or
  discrimination
• 18.5 of those who had interactions with the
  police felt they were not treated appropriately.
• Announced Queens speech Nov 6th as a
  possibility

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P 7. Right to Freedom from Arbitrary deprivation
of liberty

• The Story of Phyllis and all those like her
• The Trans person is the victim in nearly all
  cases so why do we arrest them

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Were we unanimous?

• Did we disagree?
• P 18. Protection from Medical Abuses
• Take all necessary legislative, administrative
  and other measures to ensure that no childs body
  is irreversibly altered by medical procedures in
  an attempt to impose a gender identity without
  the full, free and informed consent of the child
  in accordance with the age and maturity of the
  child and guided by the principle that in all
  actions concerning children, the best interests
  of the child shall be a primary consideration

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Intersex Babies and Children

• Who knows / decides the best interests of babies
  and children born with intersex conditions
• The Surgeons who take a conservative position
• it will cause irrevocable harm if a child goes
  to school with visibly different genitals
• The parents who listen to doctors
• - assume doctor knows best
• - provide consent to surgical alteration of the
  genitals.

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