Concern About LGBTI Registry in Tajikistan
As delivered by Deputy Political Counselor Darren Perdue
to the Permanent Council, Vienna
November 9, 2017
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The United States is deeply concerned by multiple reports that the Interior Ministry and the General Prosecutor’s Office in Tajikistan have compiled a registry of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) individuals. Reliable reports suggest that LGBTI persons have faced harassment, including by the police and the Ministry of Health, which the presence of this list could exacerbate.
All participating States, including Tajikistan, have the obligations under international law to respect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all individuals, and recognized under the Helsinki Final Act that these rights and freedoms “derive from the inherent dignity of the human person.” All persons are born equal in dignity and rights and should be treated as such and live free from fear of threats, harassment, and violence.
Mr. Chair, we urge Tajikistan to rescind the registration of LGBTI individuals.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
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