{{The United States Ambassador to Rwanda, Donald W. Koran, hosted Friday a reception in celebration of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO).}}
Members of Rwandan lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual (LGBT) groups Horizon Community Association (HOCA), My Right, and Other Sheep Rwanda joined with representatives of the Rwandan government and civil society, as well as international and bilateral missions in Kigali, for the first U.S. Embassy-sponsored IDAHO event in Rwanda.
Rwanda’s Minister of Health Dr. Agnes Binagwaho, Minister of Justice Tharcisse Karugarama, and Minister of State for Public Health Dr. Anita Asiimwe attended the event.
“Although sexual orientation and gender identity are sensitive issues for many people, we are here tonight to support the fundamental idea that no one should face targeting or discrimination because of sexual orientation or gender identity,” Ambassador Koran said.
He continued, “I’m sure we all recognize that everyone deserves to be treated with respect and dignity, no matter their race, religion, gender, nationality, or, as we emphasize tonight, sexual orientation.”
A representative from HOCA also spoke, on behalf of the wider Rwandan LGBT community. “We are happy and proud that there is no law against homosexuality in Rwanda. We thank everyone who took a part in this event.”
The United States and Rwanda both signed a 2011 statement at the UN Human Rights Council calling for an end to acts of violence and human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The U.S. government looks forward to continued support from the government of Rwanda in the fight against homophobia and transphobia.
The International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia began in 2004 as a tool to draw attention to the existence of homophobia.
It is celebrated every year on May 17th, to commemorate the day in 1990 that the World Health Organization declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder.
{{Ambassador Koran’s remarks}}
{Good evening. It is my pleasure to welcome you here on this important day, the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, known by its acronym, IDAHO.}
{Today is a day when people the world over raise awareness of the existence of homophobia, and discuss ways we as a world community can seek to end its practice. Although sexual orientation and gender identity are sensitive issues for many people, we are here tonight to support the fundamental idea that no one should face targeting or discrimination because of sexual orientation or gender identity.
As former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on International Human Rights Day in Geneva in December 2011, “Gay rights are human rights.” I’m sure we all recognize that everyone deserves to be treated with respect and dignity, no matter their race, religion, gender, nationality, or, as we emphasize tonight, sexual orientation. }
{In this spirit, I am excited to host this, our first ever U.S. Embassy-sponsored IDAHO event in Rwanda. I am especially thrilled to welcome tonight so many representatives of Rwanda’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual – LGBT in the shorthand – community.
Some of you here tonight are on the front lines of this issue. Groups like Horizon Community Association, My Right, and Other Sheep Rwanda, meet, organize, and strategize on how to improve the treatment of the LGBT community in Rwanda.
These groups have developed ways to better advocate on behalf of the LGBT community and also how to support one another in the face of homophobia and stigmatization. They represent the mothers, fathers, sons and daughters in all of our communities who deserve our support, not just today, but every day.}
{The United States stands against homophobia. More importantly, there is growing consensus across the globe that protecting the rights of LGBT persons warrants international attention. In 2011, the member states of the United Nations Human Rights Council expressed “grave concern” at violence and discrimination aimed at the LGBT community.
Rwanda supported a similar statement at the Council, calling for an end to acts of violence and related human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. We welcome this support from the government of Rwanda and encourage continued support for the LGBT community in Rwanda and the rights of LGBT individuals in UN bodies.}
{Despite these important gains, much remains to be done to ensure that all countries and all people recognize our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual brothers and sisters as just that: our brothers and sisters.
They are part of our community and deserve the same rights, respect, and freedoms as everyone else. We hope that everyone here tonight will continue to support the way forward, one that guarantees dignity and equality for all.}
{You will hear next from a representative of Rwanda’s LGBT community, and I encourage you to listen to her stories with open minds and open hearts.
Thank you.}
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