JCCNetwork.id- Rencana pertemuan komunitas lesbian, gay, biseksual, dan transgender ( LBGT ) se-ASEAN pada tanggal 17-21 Juli 2023 tuai protes keras dari publik.
Inisiator kegiatan ASEAN SOGIE Caucus, organisasi di bawah Dewan Ekonomi dan Sosial Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa (PBB) sejak 2021, bersama Arus Pelangi dan Forum Asia itu akhirnya membatalkan kegiatan yang menuai banyak kecaman tersebut.
Lini Zurlia, Koordinator ASEAN SOGIE Causus (ASC) membenarkan pembatalan kegiatan tersebut di Jakarta.
Menurutnya, penyelenggara memutuskan untuk merelokasi tempat acara di luar Indonesia, setelah mendapat serangkaian ancaman keamanan dari berbagai kalangan
Berikut pernyataan resminya yang diterima awak media:
The organizers of the ASEAN Queer Advocacy Week decided to relocate the venue of the program outside Indonesia, after receiving a series of security threats from various groups. The organizers have been monitoring the situation very closely, including the wave of “anti-LGBT” sentiments in social media. The decision was made to ensure the safety and security of both the participants and the organizer.
We affirm our call for ASEAN and government stakeholders to create spaces for dialogue with marginalized groups, including those discriminated against on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC). Our joint vision of an inclusive ASEAN region is premised on the existence of safe spaces for civil society and for rights-holders to learn about the institution, to discuss issues that matter to them, and to collectively exercise our right to freely express our views on how ASEAN advanced, or not, the human rights of our community.
Threats to the very existence of our lives and dignity are part of the everyday realities of LGBTQIA+ persons. Online hate, direct attacks against human rights defenders, and reprisals to our exercise of civil and political rights, are issues we confront and must be dealt with by governments. We urge ASEAN human rights mechanisms to monitor and respond to these.
In difficult situations where hate overshadows us, we rely on our collective strength as a community of human rights defenders. To LGBTQIA+ activists, be strong: our collective strength as a movement will sustain our activism.
Regards,
ASEAN SOGIE Caucus
