A preliminary report of research findings is available for download here (pdf, 255kb).

Research looks at how organisations working in the field rate the importance of SOGI stigma as a driver of HIV, what sorts of strategies they develop in this area, and what obstacles they face in developing and implementing effective responses.

Key findings include:

• 87% of organisations said combating SOGI stigma in society at large was a high priority.
• Just 51% of organisations reported taking action to combat SOGI stigma in society at large.
• 72% highlighted restrictive laws as a key obstacle in implementing effective strategies in this area.
• 85% stressed funding constraints as a major limitation.
• 78% of organisations self-assessed their strategies as unsatisfactory.

World Aids Conference 2014

The report will be presented at the MSMGF Pre-Conference to the International AIDS Conference will be held in Melbourne, Australia on July 19 – 20. This year’s theme is: Setting the Pace: Gay Men, MSM, and Transgender People in the Global AIDS Response.

For more information on the World AIDS Conference 2014 see the official website.

LGBTI communities and their allies came together to mark the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia in Lesotho, for only the second year running in 2014. Over 200 people came together for a march through the the centre of the capital, Maseru, as well as for speeches, discussions and performances, in a series of events co-ordinated by the Matrix Support Group.

A full gallery of pictures and short essay about the events can be found at The Hub – a locally based social justice project, and 76 crimes blog also published a write-up of the events here.

200 LGBTI activists, supporters and allies march through the streets of Maseru, May 17, 2014. Source: The Hub

This years IDAHOT actions were particularly notable for their vibrancy – with many participants dressed in rainbow colours – as well as for the fact that Lesotho is one of around 80 countries in the world which criminalises same-sex intimacy.

Local activists note that in practice the law is not enforced as such, but is used as a tool to intimidate and coerce members of local LGBTI communities. More information can be found in this brief report.

The Matrix Support Group has been working since 2008 (and was formally registered in 2010, by the Lesotho Law Office), to empower local LGBTI communities, and to support responses to the country’s HIV/AIDS epidemic.

More Photos from IDAHOT 2014 in Lesotho from The Hub

Madagascar was one of various countries in which the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia was commemorated for the very first time in 2014. Local activists and supporters organised a pioneering series of events, spread over two days, with the support of the support of the local NAC (SE/CNLS) and UNAIDS, in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

Poster created for the IDAHOT 2014 commemorations in Madagascar – in Malagasy and French.

Key actions around the IDAHOT 2014 included:

• Availability of flyers and posters in key locations (Karaokes, Pubs/Bars, Discos, IFM-Institut Franco-Malgache…) from Friday, May 16, onwards.
• Sensitisation in some Karaokes with distribution of condoms and flyers – Friday day / night
• A press Conference on Saturday morning by the NGOs with the support and presence of the NAC and UNAIDS – a banner will be printed for the occasion.
• A disco night on Saturday evening dedicated to IDAHOT.
• Within the U.N. House the results of the 2013 UN Madagascar wide survey on homophobia and the posters with the world map were also distributed.
• Also, in the week around May 17, the “Malagasy short movies festival” was hosted at the IFM, where one of the movies in the contest was about homosexuality.

Photos from the events

Newspaper coverage of the events, in the Madagascar Laza, and photos of the press conference and discussion event on the 17th. Courtesy of UN AIDS Indian Ocean – via their facebook page.

Further information

You can find out more about UN AIDS Indian Ocean via their website and facebook page.

Poster from this year’s actions

Around the world, LGBT people are disproportionately affected by the HIV epidemic. Specifically, infection rates in men who have sex with men (MSM) and trans people are up to 20 times higher than in the general population. One of the main causes of this is, noticeably, the restriction of accurate and objective information on the specific drivers of HIV for these groups, as homophobic laws, regulations and practices leave them out of necessary HIV prevention, care, treatment and support.

In places where homosexuality is legally criminalized and/or culturally discriminated, health services are often forced to silence all aspects of prevention for MSM and trans people who, in addition, do not dare to seek medical care and treatment, as this may lead to persecution, denial of services, detention, blackmail or violence.

Homophobic laws furthermore have strong indirect effects on the spread of HIV: they increase stigma and discrimination, and they damage the self esteem of sexual and gender minorities, resulting in more exposure to risk, including unprotected sex.

The fight against homophobia and transphobia, accordingly, plays a significant role to combat the epidemic. Even with an advance of biomedical factors relating to HIV medicine, homophobia and transphobia, if not addressed, will always act the major drivers behind HIV within MSM and trans people.

IDEAS FOR ACTION

• Documentary and Movie Screening. Many argue that HIV activism serves as entry point for LGBT movement, especially in the era/place when/where LGBT rights is still too foreign for the public. Documentary movie showcasing LGBT activists  taking the streets to demand equal health care and rights for HIV-impacted populations, which many of them are gay, bisexual and transgender people – and/or – personal stories of early epidemic years’ LGBT witnesses – may do justice to shed light on the intersection between HIV and Homophobia.  Our top documentary movie choices are How to Survive a Plague and We Were Here.
• Join the IDAHOT Creative Protest working group on Facebook, where over 350 human rights activists from around the world are already discussing their protest plans for May 17 2014. It’s an informal space for networking, ideas sharing, planning and IDAHOT events posting in the lead up to the Day, and beyond.
• Get inspired by our “Ideas for Action 2014” to conduct a creative protest around the Day.

FURTHER RESOURCES

• MSMGF‘s (The Global Forum on MSM & HIV) Publications
• THE LANCET’s publications on MSM & HIV
• World Bank‘s “The Global HIV Epidemics among Men who Have Sex with Men”