Friday Fax
Volume 9, Number 14 | March 24, 2006
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Dear Colleague, We report today on the newest and ongoing efforts to push homosexuality on the United Nations Human Rights Commission. You should pray every day for the very good coalition of pro-family groups working very hard in Geneva to stop this. Spread the word. Yours sincerely, Austin Ruse President |
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Latest Attempt to Push
'Sexual Orientation' at Human Rights Commission
By Samantha Singson
Despite the fact that this year's U.N. Commission on Human Rights (CHR) has been drastically shortened from its original six-week schedule, gay rights NGOs are pushing forward with their plans to hold a world conference next week in Geneva. The International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) conference was scheduled to coincide with the CHR session with the aim of putting pressure on the United Nations to grant full recognition of lesbian and gay rights. This is not the first time that ILGA and other gay rights groups have attempted to get the CHR to address the issue of discrimination on the basis of "sexual orientation." In 2003 and 2004, Brazil, supported by Canada and most of the members of the European Union, introduced a resolution to add sexuality to the list of categories protected by the United Nations. Both times, the measure failed due to a lack of international support. Gay rights groups have blamed the Holy See and Muslim nations for pressuring other states to defeat the resolution. Pro-family groups have warned that gay rights activists would use a non-discrimination clause in a U.N. document to bolster their claim to same-sex "marriage" and to bolster the call for hate crimes laws. Muslim and Christian groups argue that accepting "sexual orientation" could deny religious faiths the freedom to criticize the homosexual lifestyle. There have been several cases that demonstrate this threat to religious freedom. In June 2004, Swedish pastor Ake Green was arrested and sentenced to one month in prison for preaching from his pulpit against homosexuality at his church in Kalmar in 2003. Green was the first pastor prosecuted for a "hate crime" after the Swedish government added "sexual orientation" to its "hate crime" law in 2003. Next week marks the last meeting of the Commission on Human Rights. Earlier this month, the General Assembly voted in favor of disbanding the CHR and instituting a new Human Rights Council. Though the CHR will not have to address ILGA's demand for the universal recognition of gay rights, pro-family groups are certain that the issue will be unavoidable when the new Human Rights Council begins meetings later this year. ILGA is well known at the U.N., having been suspended in 1994, only one year after gaining its ECOSOC status, after it was revealed that pro-pedophilia groups such as the North American Man/Boy Love Association, had membership within the organization. ILGA attempted to regain status in 2000, and again in 2003, but were refused. This past January, a U.N. committee again rejected ILGA's latest bid to regain ECOSOC status. |
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Family & Human Rights Institute). Permission granted for unlimited use. Credit required. Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute 866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 427 New York, New York 10017 Phone: (212) 754-5948 Fax: (212) 754-9291 E-mail: c-fam@c-fam.org Website: www.c-fam.org |