Shadow Reports

Major treaties of the United Nations spell out governments’ obligations to uphold the highest human rights principles in relation to torture, women’s rights, racism, and children’s rights, to name a few. Committees of independent experts routinely scrutinize the records of governments that ratify these treaties, which creates an opportunity for communities and activists to tell their stories and hold their governments accountable.

Toward this end, IGLHRC and other organizations write "shadow reports" which literally "shadow" official government reports. Over the years, IGLHRC and partners have submitted dozens of reports to these committees of experts. These reports create an invaluable record of human rights violations from the perspective of LGBT communities themselves.

In response, the committees charged with supervising governments’ compliance with the treaties have issued far-reaching orders to governments to uphold human rights, including by calling for the decriminalization of sodomy, calling for the end to discrimination in employment, and calling for recognition of diverse forms of families. Their words are taken seriously, and there are many examples of governments changing laws, policies and practices as a result of this process.

Below are some examples of shadow reports IGLHRC has authored, edited, and/or in some way supported.

Latest Shadow Reports:

2013: Colombia

2012: Chile · Guatemala · Guyana · Philippines · Turkey · Zimbabwe

2011: Costa Rica · Iran · Jamaica · Malawi · Singapore · South Korea · Turkey

Shadow Reports By Region:

Africa | Asia Pacific | Europe/Central Asia | Latin America/Carribean | Middle East/North Africa