”Countries that criminalise LGBTQ+ people should be suspended from the Commonwealth.” Commonwealth leaders to face LGBTQ+ protest at Westminster

The Peter Tatchell Foundation is coordinating a protest, which will include LGBTQ+ people who have fled victimisation and violence in Commonwealth countries. from 12pm on Monday, March 11 as “homophobic leaders” of 30 Commonwealth countries that criminalise LGBTs arrive at the Commonwealth’s 75th anniversary service at Westminster Abbey. In a release, Peter Tatchell Foundation said: “Shamefully, they’ll be welcomed by the Church of England and the UK Government.”

The protest is urging all Commonwealth governments, including those that impose maximum penalty of life imprisonment for same-sex acts – Bangladesh, Guyana, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Uganda, to:

Decriminalise same-sex relations
Prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity
Enforce laws against threats and violence, to protect LGBTQ+ people from hate crimes
Consult and dialogue with their LGBTQ+ organisations

Peter Tatchell said: “As the Commonwealth celebrates, we mourn! We are calling out the 30 Commonwealth leaders who violate the equality principles of their own constitutions and the Commonwealth Charter. They preside over the state-sanctioned persecution of their LGBTQ+ citizens.

“Thirty out of 56 Commonwealth countries criminalise homosexuality, mostly under laws imposed by Britain during the nineteenth century when it was the colonial power. Six Commonwealth countries have life imprisonment. Millions of LGBTQ+ Commonwealth citizens are at risk of arrest, jail time, mob violence and discrimination in employment, housing, education and health care.

“These anti-LGBTQ+ laws violate the Commonwealth Charter which pledges that all member states are ‘committed to equality’ and are ‘opposed to all forms of discrimination.’

“Most Commonwealth leaders refuse to recognise that LGBTQ+ rights are human rights. For 75 years, they’ve vetoed any discussion of the issue at their heads of government meetings.

”Countries that criminalise LGBTQ+ people should be suspended from the Commonwealth,” said Mr Tatchell.