The UN Human Rights Council once again reminds all States of their obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill the rights of LGBT and gender diverse people
(Geneva, 7 July 2025) – The Human Rights Council has renewed the mandate of the only human rights expert within the United Nations system that is specifically dedicated to addressing violence and discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans (LGBT) and gender diverse persons.
Following a campaign by 1,259 non-governmental organisations from 157 States and territories, the UN human rights body adopted the resolution by a vote of 29 in favour, with 15 voting against and 3 abstaining.
Thanks to this vote, the Human Rights Council reaffirmed its commitment to combating discrimination and violence against everyone, reminding all States of their obligations towards people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities.
The Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) will now be able to continue the work for three more years. The mandate is currently held by South African scholar Graeme Reid.
The renewal of the IE SOGI mandate by the Human Rights Council represents a critical reaffirmation of the international community’s commitment to protecting the dignity, rights and lives of trans and gender diverse people worldwide.
This renewal signals clear recognition of the ongoing discrimination and violence our communities face, offering a powerful mechanism to hold States accountable and drive meaningful change.
For trans-led organizations such as GATE, this strengthens our advocacy efforts, empowering us to continue pushing for comprehensive legal protections, inclusive policies and societal recognition that trans rights are fundamental human rights. GATE celebrates this victory and looks forward to ongoing collaboration with the mandate. – Erika Castellanos
Created in 2016, and renewed in 2019 and 2022, the mandate of the Independent Expert on SOGI has been supported by a growing number of States from all regions. The current resolution to renew the mandate was presented by a Core Group of six Latin American countries – Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Uruguay – and was co-sponsored by 50 countries from all regions.
The Independent Expert is tasked with assessing the implementation of international human rights law, investigating violence and discrimination against LGBT and gender diverse persons, and helping States, UN agencies, other mandates and bodies in the international and regional systems to address them.
Since the post was established, three successive mandate holders have conducted official visits to 11 countries, produced 17 reports documenting discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity – including the impact of the criminalisation of same-sex relations between consenting adults, the need to legally recognise a person’s gender, and the situation of LGBT persons who are forcibly displaced, among others – and sent communications documenting allegations of human rights violations to 171 States across all regions.
Having secured a renewal for three more years, this mandate will now continue to support initiatives ensuring that LGBT and gender diverse people can live free of discrimination in countries around the world, and to amplify their voices and testimonies in international human rights fora.
Civil society worldwide urges all governments to cooperate fully with the Independent Expert in this important work to bring about a world free from violence and discrimination for everyone.
Note to editors:
- The Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is appointed by the UN Human Rights Council. The mandate was established in 2016 and has been held by Vitit Muntarbhorn (2016-2017) from Thailand, Victor Madrigal-Borloz (2018-2023) from Costa Rica, and Graeme Reid (2023-ongoing) from South Africa.
- The press release refers to “people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities” or to “LGBT” – instead of “LGBTI” – as the mandate is specifically tasked with addressing human rights violations on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Organizations signing the statement and media contacts:
- ILGA World: Daniele Paletta, communications manager, media (a) ilga (dot) org
- International Service for Human Rights (ISHR): Fabiana Leibl, programme manager, f (dot) leibl (a) ishr (dot) ch; Francisco Pérez, communications and media manager, f (dot) perez (a) ishr (dot) ch
- Global Action for Trans Equality – GATE: Naomhán O’Connnor, director of communications, noconnor (a) gate (dot) ngo
- ERA LGBTI Association for the Western Balkans and Türkiye: Elena Petrovska, project and advocacy coordinator, elena (a) lgbti-era (dot) org
- Caribbean Equality Project: Mohamed Q. Amin, executive director, Mohamed (a) CaribbeanEqualityProject (dot) org
- OTD Chile: Ignacia Oyarzun, president, politicapublica (a) otdchile (dot) org
- Equality Australia: Savanh Tanhchareun, international advisor, savanh (dot) tanhchareun (a) equalityaustralia (dot) org (dot) au
- International Planned Parenthood Federation