LGBT rights battle intensifies in multiple countries

The UN Human Rights Commission held its first session on LGBT violence last month. While the Secretary General called violence against gays and lesbians “a monumental tragedy for those affected – and a stain on our collective conscience,” many Arab and some African nations hastily walked out of the Geneva meeting in protest.

The battle between what is legal and illegal for gays and lesbians is increasingly crossing national boundaries. The wide gulf in agreement over extending rights to LGBT highlights the messy politics over rights — who gets to decide them, and how. On March 15 the European Parliament condemned a pending Nigerian law that criminalizes homosexuality, again. Nigeria already criminalizes homosexuality — this legislation takes the extra step of criminalizing any group found guilty of organizing, operating or supporting gay clubs, organizations and meetings. The bill still needs to pass the House to become law but has large support within Nigeria. Upon passage in the Senate, Nigerian Senator Baba-Ahmed Yusuf Datti commented on gays and lesbians in Nigeria, saying "such elements in society should be killed."

But the bill targets more than lesbians and gays according to groups like the Population Council, a public health organization in Nigeria. If enacted, any organizations, say, HIV/AIDS groups, for example, peripherally involved with aiding gays and lesbians could be criminalized. "The bill will be harmful to the health and access of services that many of the country's most vulnerable citizens need," said Kunle Williams of the Population Council in a statement.

Several other pieces of legislation around the globe are also targeting organizations thought to be affiliated with the LGBT community. A bill criminalizing public speech on LGBT rights was enacted in St. Petersburg, Russia, extending hefty fines to organizations with events on homosexuality, outlawing speaking publically on the subject. Yet another pending legislation, this one in Uganda, punishes organizations that “promote or in any way abet homosexuality and related practices,” with five years in prison.

Read more from GlobalPost: Russia's assault on 'gay' free speech

One commonality between these three pieces of legislation: very vague language. A wide swath of people, organizations or groups could be targeted, but it is hard to tell how far lawmakers will go to prosecute. Will AIDS patients be targeted? Or heads of foreign human rights organizations?

If the Nigerian bill is passed as written, “All HIV/ AIDS work, all human rights work becomes a criminal act.” Rashidi Williams, a Nigerian LGBT activist said, speaking from Nigeria, “the consequences are more than I can enumerate. People will take the law into their own hands, extort, blackmail, rape, and harass.”

“The implication of this bill goes far into the Nigerian society, whether you are gay or lesbian or not; it’s about basic human rights,” said Williams. For now he and other LGBT Nigerians are laying low, monitoring the bill’s progress in the House, and waiting to see what will happen. 

L. Thomas Galloway is the president of the Galloway Family Foundation, whose focus is on international journalism and human rights and funds the Center for International Journalism. The foundation also supports GlobalPost in investigative and in-depth reporting projects. 

Anja Tranovich is a journalist at the Center for International Journalism. She’s reported on development issues from four continents and covered the United Nations for two news wires. Anja Tranovich previously worked as the editor at Dowser.org and has been a writer and editor for magazines, dailies and radio productions. She is a graduate of Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.