International Lesbian & Gay Association

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Conference
2002 National Lesbian & Gay Conference
Date
1 August 2002
Decision
Carried

Conference condemns the homophobic position of countries that voted to reject the International Lesbian and Gay Association’s (ILGA) application for consultative status to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations on 30th April 2002.

Conference notes that at least two thirds of these countries operate laws criminalising same-sex relationships.

Conference is appalled that opponents claimed their position was based on doubts about ILGA’s position on paedophilia, and made false allegations against ILGA, including that it wishes to abolish the age of consent.

Conference believes that this, and other evidence of a growing coalition between right-wing Christian organisations and conservative governments in UN for a, underlines the need for trade unions to actively campaign at international level for the recognition of LGBT rights as human rights.

It therefore welcomes the increasing numbers of union affiliations to ILGA and the resolution of the 2002 TUC LGBT conference reaffirming support for ILGA and calling on the TUC and affiliates to raise these issues in appropriate international bodies.

Conference recognises that the ILGA Europe conference being held in Glasgow in October 2003 provides an excellent opportunity to further encourage union participation in ILGA and international work on LGBT rights. It warmly welcomes the support being given by UNISON Scotland and the Scottish Regional Lesbian Gay Committee to this conference.

Conference urges those regional groups that have not affiliated to ILGA to do so, and calls on all regional groups to send delegates to the conference in Glasgow.

Conference also urges UNISON members to become individual members of ILGA, and instructs the National Lesbian and Gay Committee (NLGC) to promote and publicise this.

It further instructs the NLGC to urge the NEC to:

1.Write a letter of support to ILGA;

2.Raise these issues in appropriate international trade union bodies and other fora;

3.Actively support future applications from ILGA for consultative status to the UN Economic and Social Council and other appropriate bodies.

4.