This is a brief selection of news showing how Covid-19 is affecting LGBTI communities worldwide. Share more stories at [email protected]

Worldwide

United Methodist Church postpones 2020 general conference and vote over marriage equality and ordination of LGBTQ pastors

Latin America and the Caribbean

Rio City Hall distributes rainbow face masks

Pride Bermuda raises funds for laid off hotel workers

North America

New Jersey should collect data on sexual orientation of coronavirus patients, legislator says

Europe and Central Asia

LGBTQI people's needs ignored in Georgia as government makes Covid-19 crisis plans

A Cardinal hired by Pope Francis comes to aid of trans sex workers in Italy

Africa

Coronavirus heightens anxiety among LGBTQ Nigerians with HIV

A transgender woman set herself on fire in Georgia to highlight the struggle of trans sex workers with no income during the #coronavirus lockdown l #LGBT+https://t.co/HUjna5zUWZ

— Thomson Reuters Foundation News (@TRF_Stories) May 1, 2020

Georgia: Trans woman and sex worker protests government inaction through self-immolation

A trans woman and sex worker set herself on fire in Georgia’s capital of Tbilisi during a public demonstration, in protest of the government’s alleged lack of support for the community during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Police quickly subdued the woman, who is currently in hospital.

“I am a transgender woman, and I’m setting myself on fire because the Georgian state doesn’t care about me,” she announced as police worked to remove her burning clothes.

According to local organisation, Tbilisi Pride, strict rules to curb the spread of the virus, including a night-time curfew, have deprived many people of all their income, with sex workers especially hard hit.

"Most of them cannot return to their homes and this creates a problem because where would you go if you don't have money and the owner is kicking you out?" said Giorgi Tabagari of Tbilisi Pride. While there are social security measures in place to provide limited payments to informal workers who can prove a significant loss of income, it is as yet unclear whether sex workers are eligible to apply for the grant.

The International LGBTQI Youth and Student Organisation (IGLYO), has issued its own statement on the matter, calling on the Georgian government to do more to support LGBTQI youth and communities during the pandemic, but has urged those sharing information about the event to be cautious.

“We do not want this tragic and desperate act to be perceived as an effective way of dealing with the situation,” said Mari Kurtanidze, IGLYO Board Member. “I want to emphasise that self-harm should never have to be resorted to as a way of protest and we should do everything to avoid this kind of instance in the future.”

LGBTQ people in Taiwan have been reporting improved interpersonal relationships with their colleagues and managers at work, saying that their privacy is being more respected, according to the results of a survey released Tuesday.https://t.co/DGWTDkvaGB

— Taiwan in the US (@TECRO_USA) May 5, 2020

Taiwan: LGBTQ-workers experiencing improved relations with colleagues and managers

A joint survey by the Marriage Equality Coalition Taiwan and the Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline Association has found that fewer LGBTQ people are experiencing hostility from colleagues and managers in the workplace, as compared to four years ago.

The study, which asked a range of questions to more than 2000 LGBTQ participants, found that the percentage of people facing pressure from colleagues to marry someone of the opposite sex dropped from 56.3% to 37.9% since 2016, with additional decreases in participants saying they had to pretend to be straight or who had been criticised for their gender expression at work.

It is uncertain to what degree Taiwan’s passing of its marriage equality law last year may have contributed to shifting perceptions among the public, though the survey has found that LGBTQ discrimination is far from erased from the Taiwanese workplace. Despite LGBTQ persons having legal protection against discrimination at work, almost 60% of survey participants said their companies did not treat LGBTQ-related discrimination complaints seriously.

Press Statement- 05 May 2020:
Namibain Human Rights Defenders and Civil Society Organisations Condemning Human Rights Violations and Transphobia in Namibia. @namibiansun @TheNamibian @RoyalCWSociety @Gend_Soc @theconfidente @LindaRMBaumann pic.twitter.com/DilqKky2D4

— Namibia Diverse Women's Association (NDWA) (@DiverseNdwa) May 6, 2020

Namibia: Human rights defenders call on public to end transphobic social media posts after trans woman assaulted

A coalition of eleven Namibian and regional human rights defenders has issued a statement condemning the transphobic and homophobic responses to a viral video shared widely across the country last week, in which former presidential candidate, Frans Migub |Goagoseb tied a trans woman to a chair and attacked her with a cattle whip.

|Goagoseb and two other men have been arrested and the victim has been relocated to a safe house, but much of the online commentary around the incident demonstrated amusement at the assault and sympathy for the perpetrator.

“We commend the rapid response from the Ministries of Justice and Gender, the Namibian police and law enforcement agents for ensuring that the perpetrator and accomplices were apprehended,” said the joint statement, but adding that despite Namibia’s relatively progressive legislation “the widespread hate speech, transphobic attacks, ‘legitimisation’ and sensationalism of the tortuous act, by the community and online responses, removes the human dignity of the survivor and violates so many of the rights that we all expect for the advancement and betterment of our country.”

The coalition has called on the Namibian government to stand by its “zero-tolerance” policy for human rights violations; called on local media to report ethically and sensitively on the case; and called on the public to cease all hate speech and discrimination against the LGBTI community.

Get involved in Australia’s first LGBTI Domestic Violence Awareness Day #ImHereForYou visit our website for more information https://t.co/lGkAMptMtv pic.twitter.com/0lpfPoicln

— Ben Bjarnesen (@BenBjarnesen) May 2, 2020

Australia: #ImHereForYou – 28 May to mark first LGBTI Domestic Violence Awareness Day

The advocacy work of a Queensland police officer, Ben Bjarnesen, will see 28 May marked by local groups as Australia’s inaugural LGBTI Domestic Violence Awareness Day. The new initiative, which is intended to occur annually in May – when the country marks the Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Month – seeks to raise awareness for the high rates of unreported domestic violence in LGBTI relationships.

Up to 62% of LGBTI Australians are said to have experienced some form of domestic abuse, though only 6% are believed to formally report incidents to police. Thus, the initiative, which has received the support of Queensland community organisations DVConnect and the Queensland Council for LGBTI Health, has adopted the theme of #ImHereForYou to encourage survivors to reach out and seek help.

“It’s so important that people from LGBTI communities know that help is available for them,” said Bjarnesen, himself a survivor of domestic violence. “They don’t have to live with abuse and everyone, regardless of their sexuality or gender identity, deserves to live a life free from violence and abuse.”

“On May 28, tell your friends, family and LGBTI communities that you’re here for them and help raise awareness, remember the victims who’ve lost their lives, and support those in abusive relationships and those that have survived.”

Good to see this story continuing to be told. #LGBTQ

Canada to memorialize LGBT victims of Cold War-era ‘gay purge’ - The Washington Post https://t.co/zGhxz0JFeE

— Michelle Douglas (@MDouglas_YOW) May 3, 2020

Canada: Monument to victims of “gay purge” across the military to be erected in Ottawa

Officials and advocates in Canada will build a monument in the capital of Ottawa to commemorate the LGBT service members who were expelled from the armed forces on the grounds of their sexual orientations and gender identities. From the 1950s to the 1990s, thousands of military recruits across Canada lost their jobs as part of the country’s “gay purge”, even after the partial decriminalisation of same-sex sexual activity in 1967.

“Monuments […] can unite us in grief, help us learn about our past and bring us together as Canadians,” said Heritage Minister, Steven Guilbeault. “This monument will invite Canadians to reflect on this shameful time in our history and allow us to move forward together toward a future where all Canadians are respected for who they are.”

The purge, which saw LGBT Canadians followed by investigators, spied on through their phones, and interrogated by military superiors and psychologists, was formally brought to an end in 1992 after victims took legal action against the state. In 2017, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued an apology and the state reached a settlement with victims of the purge. Per the settlement, CAD 103 millions were set aside as compensation, and the previously classified military records relating to the mass firings would begin to be released – though only a few hundred of the 11,000 confidential pages have yet been made public.

Construction on the monument itself has not yet begun though it is expected to be finished in 2024.

Our new survey is the largest and most comprehensive study of LGBT people in Colombia. Results show that LGBT Colombians have experienced high levels of victimization and discrimination. https://t.co/IHa15AMLOo pic.twitter.com/zttVLGhTp8

— Williams Institute (@WilliamsPolicy) May 6, 2020

Colombia: More than a fifth of LGBT Colombians have undergone “conversion therapy”

A study helmed by the Williams Institute at UCLA, has found that 21% of LGBT Colombians have experienced some form of “conversion therapy”, with the number rising to approximately one in three for trans persons.

The report asked 4,867 people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities a range of questions on demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status, exposure to stress, discrimination, violence, and health status in order to build up a broad view of the lived realities of LGBT Colombians.

Colombia remains part of a majority of countries which have not implemented any comprehensive bans on “conversion therapies” – an umbrella term for a range of practices now known to be ineffective in altering a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity, and widely criticised as psychologically and physically harmful by a range of experts and human rights defenders, as noted in ILGA World’s recent world survey into such practices and laws banning them.

“As a clinical psychologist, every week I have parents who come to me with their LGBT children […] so that I can help their children become heterosexual,” said Jennifer Florez-Donado, one of the study’s co-authors, noting that some families also turn to religious leaders to cure the “illness”.

The UCLA study yielded a range of other concerning statistics as well, with 25% of participants reporting being fired on the basis of their sexual orientations or gender identities, and approximately three quarters having experienced physical and verbal abuse or bullying. As a result, a quarter of participants admitted to attempting suicide at least once, with suicidal thoughts being especially common among trans persons in the study.

“Considering the levels of violence, victimisation, and discrimination that LGBT respondents experienced, it is not surprising that respondents reported such high rates of suicidal ideation and attempts,” said Florez-Donado, though she and the other researchers are hopeful that their data could help policy makers better address the needs of LGBT Colombians. “This research shows how critical it is to develop suicide prevention and violence treatment programs for LGBT people in the country,” she said.