Australia Sets Up New Fund To Help Push For LGBT Rights In Asia-Pacific
Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong. Image: Facebook
Australia will create a dedicated international fund to help further LGBTQI rights and reduce discrimination against the community in the Asia-Pacific region.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong is scheduled to speak at the opening of Sydney WorldPride’s Human Rights Conference on Wednesday and is likely to announce further details about the fund.
The federal government will initially allocate $3.5 million towards the fund, reported the Sydney Morning Herald.听
A coalition of LGBTQI groups across Asia and the Pacific, along with the Global Philanthropy Project and Equality Australia last week released a report that called on Australia to provide $15 million per year to community groups in the region.听
Anti-LGBTQI Laws In Asia-Pacific Countries
LGBTQI groups in Australia and across the region have welcomed the creation of the fund.听
鈥淭his groundbreaking announcement marks the first time Australia has committed to a long-term strategy and dedicated funding to help LGBTIQ+ people in our region address social stigma and legal discrimination,鈥� Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown said in a statement.
鈥淔urther funding is needed to meet the urgent need in the region, and we look forward to seeing the details of the Government鈥檚 plan for a new LGBTIQ+ human rights strategy which must be developed in close and open partnership with our community,鈥� said Brown.听
APCOM Executive Director Midnight Poonkasetwattana said the fund was a “historic moment” for community groups in the Asia-Pacific region.听
“Countries in this region are home to some of the world鈥檚 harshest anti-LGBTIQ+ laws,鈥� said Poonkasetwattana in a statement.听
鈥淪eventeen Asia-Pacific nations criminalise consensual same-sex relations, including seven Pacific Island countries, with punishments ranging from caning to up to life in prison and in some cases even death.鈥�
What About Australia, Asks Just.Equal
National lobby group, Just.Equal Australia, while welcoming the federal funding for the Asia-Pacific region, criticised the government for failing to do the same at home.听
鈥淭here is a double standard here, with the Government rightly funding LGBTIQA+ advocacy in our region, but failing to take this discrimination seriously in Australia,鈥� Just.Equal spokesperson Brian Greig said.听
听“The Government has repeatedly refused to appoint an LGBTIQA+ Human Rights Commissioner in Australia, despite the Australian Human Rights Commission having specific commissioners for other minorities. On top of that, the only LGBTIQA+ policy officer at the AHRC was made redundant due to funding cuts, leaving the Commission with no one to focus on our rights for the first time in decades.”
鈥淭his is why the AHRC has not issued a policy or even a media statement on LGBTIQA+ human rights since 2021, despite escalating attacks on our human rights,” added Greig.听
According to Just.Equal $3.5 million was not enough and pointed to countries like Netherlands, Sweden and Canada, spending $75 million, $34 million and $25 million respectively on international LGBTQI advocacy in 2019-20. The organisation said Australia must increase the funding to make any “meaningful impact” in the region.
