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Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: Ravina Shamdasani

Location: Geneva

 

Kyrgyzstan

We call on the Kyrgyz Parliament and authorities to refrain from passing draft legislation that would embed in law discrimination against people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT). The proposed law would also violate fundamental human rights, including the rights to liberty, security and physical integrity and to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association. These rights are protected by human rights treaties ratified by Kyrgyzstan.

UN human rights mechanisms have previously expressed concerns about discrimination and violence against LGBT people in Kyrgyzstan and the lack of a response from the Kyrgyz authorities. The draft law adds to those concerns and may lead to further violations. The adoption of this law would also go against the commitments made by Kyrgyzstan during its Universal Periodic Review in the UN Human Rights Council in 2010, when it accepted recommendations to review compliance of its national legislation with provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) on non-discrimination, in particular with regard to women, minorities, and on the basis of ethnicity, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

The UN has documented that similar laws elsewhere have had negative impacts on human rights, including increased attacks and discrimination against LGBT individuals, notably children and youth. The law would also likely have a negative impact on national public health responses, in particular among people who live with HIV and those most at risk of contracting HIV, as well as on access to information about reproductive rights of women.  

Everyone is entitled to equality before the law, without any discrimination, and it is the State’s responsibility to protect all individuals from discrimination. We thus urge the authorities not to pass this law.

We are also concerned about another bill currently going through Kyrgyzstan’s parliament, which risks creating a difficult environment for the operation of civil society groups. We are closely following developments on this draft law and call on the authorities to take measures to ensure that Kyrgyz national legislation fully complies with international human rights standards.