Geneva, 22 March 2019 – The United Nationsan international organisation comprising 193 member States. It has the mission of maintaining peace and security, protecting human rights, providing humanitarian aid and ensuring economic and social development across the globe. It is a network of many different bodies and agencies, each of which has a particular role and responsibility. More Human Rights Councilan inter-governmental body within the United Nations which has the responsibility to promote and protect human rights. It is comprised of 47 member States, each elected to 3-year terms by the 193 member States of the United Nations. More has adopted without a vote a resolution that expresses concerns about existing discriminatory regulations, rules and practices that require some women and girl athletes to medically reduce their blood testosterone levels by undergoing unnecessary, humiliating and harmful medical procedures or hormone therapy in order to participate in women’s events in competitive sports. The resolution, brought by South Africa, also requests the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights to prepare a report on the intersections between race and genderrefers to a social construct which places cultural and social expectations on individuals based on their assigned sex. More discriminationunequal or unfair treatment which can be based on a range of grounds - such as age, ethnic background, disability, and diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions or sex characteristics, amongst others. More in sports.
“Thank you to South Africa and the Human Rights Council for approving this first resolution on the rights of people born with intersex variations. Access to sport is a litmus test for the rights of intersex people, highlighting the ways that our legal birth classifications can be disregarded, how our bodies are sites of public scrutiny and stigmatisation, and our right to bodily integrity disregarded. Previous IAAF regulations affecting women born with variations of sex characteristics were suspended in 2015 with no evidence of detriment to women’s sport. There is no published, transparent, and reproducible evidence of a clear or unethical advantage by women athletes born with variations of sex characteristics over other women athletes. Exclusion from women’s competitive sport is discriminatory under such circumstances; it is not reasonable, proportionate and non-arbitrary. Sporting authorities and associations must now recognise a need for procedures to meet international human rights standards” Morgan Carpenter, Intersex Human Rights Australia, and YP+10 signatory
The resolution recognises the multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination that women and girls face in sports settings, because of their race and sexrefers to the classification of a person as male, female, or other - usually made at birth, written on a birth certificate, and usually based on the appearance of their external anatomy. A person’s sex, however, is actually a combination of bodily characteristics, including chromosomes, hormones, internal and external reproductive organs, and secondary sex characteristics. More, and the right to bodily integrity and autonomy, among other things.
The 2018 regulations for the female classification published by the International Association for Athletics Federation (IAAF) are not reasonable nor objective and have a direct impact on women born with variations of sex characteristicsa term that refers to physical features relating to sex - including genitalia and other sexual and reproductive anatomy, chromosomes, hormones, and secondary physical features emerging from puberty. More. They are not compatible with international human rights lawa legal system laying down obligations which States are bound to respect. By becoming parties to international treaties, States assume obligations and duties under international law to respect, protect and fulfil human rights – including by putting into place domestic measures and legislation. Where domestic legal proceedings fail to address human rights abuses, mechanisms and procedures for individual complaints or communications are available at the regional and international levels to help ensure that international human rights standards are respected. More.
The UNESCO Revised International Charter of Physical Education, Physical Activity and Sport (2015) states that equal opportunity to participate and be involved at all supervision and decision-making levels in sport is the right of every woman and girl – and this groundbreaking resolution reinforces that standard by calling on international sporting bodies to halt their policing of women and girl’s bodily integrity and autonomy in the name of fair play.
Furthermore the resolution reinforces the 2016 statement of the UN Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, outlining actions by States and sporting bodies to create an inclusive culture for intersexan umbrella term for the spectrum of variations of sex characteristics that naturally occur within the human species. Intersex people are born with variations of sex characteristics (such as genitals, reproductive organs, hormonal and chromosomal patterns) that are more diverse than stereotypical definitions of male or female bodies. Up to 1.7% of the global population are born with such traits; yet, because their bodies are seen as different, intersex children and adults are often stigmatised and subject to harmful practices – including in medical settings - and discriminated against. More persons to fully and safely participate in sport.
“As the Special Rapporteur’s report states, sporting authorities must refrain from forcing, coercing, or otherwise pressuring any women athletes into undergoing unnecessary, irreversible and harmful medical procedures to participate as women in competitions. This includes removing requirements for irrelevant clinical data, and ending unnecessary medical procedures, as preconditions for women born with variations of sex characteristics to fully participate in competitions” Zhan Chiam, Programme Coordinator and Diana Carolina Prado Mosquera, Senior UN Advocacy Officer at ILGA
“We recognize the tremendous work from South Africa has in presenting this groundbreaking resolution and also acknowledge the importance on bringing this topic to the Council for the first time.” Tony Briffa, newly elected Chair of the Intersex Committee at ILGA.
ILGA particularly welcomes the contribution of the delegations of Iceland and New Zealand towards the successful adoption of the resolution. Consensus on this resolution is a positive signal of recognition by states that these type of guidelines and regulations violate the right to privacy and the right to freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, among others.
The undersigned organizations welcome this groundbreaking resolution which will put a spotlight to the multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination that women and girls face in sport:
International Lesbianadjective/noun to describe a woman whose enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction is to other women. Women and non-binary people may use this term to describe themselves. More, Gayadjective to describe people whose enduring physical, romantic, and/ or emotional
attractions are to people of the same gender. Men, women and non-binary people may use this
term to describe themselves. More, Bisexualadjective used to describe a person who has the capacity to form enduring physical, romantic, and/ or emotional attractions to those of the same gender or to those of other genders. More, Transadjective/umbrella term to describe a person whose gender identity does not match the sex they were assigned at birth. More and Intersex Association (ILGA World)
Athlete Allya term used to describe someone who is actively supportive of LGBTI people. It encompasses straight and cisgender allies, as well as LGBTI people who actively support other populations within the community at large. More
NNID, Netherlands organisation for sex diversity
Organisation Intersex International Europe (OII Europe)
Iranti
GATE
Intersex Human Rights Australia