Subject: ILGA RIO 1995

From: Bj|rn Skolander <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 28 Jun 1995 08:00:30 +0200 (MSZ)

17th ILGA World Conference  Rio de Janeiro, Brazil  June 26, 1995

PRESS RELEASE: CONSOLIDATION AND DIVERSITY

The 17th ILGA World Conference, which started on the 18th in Rio de
Janeiro, came to a rousing close yesterday with a grand lesbian and
gay pride demonstration. The colorful and gay march, complete with
samba bands, was the largest ever in South America. Demonstrators
carried a two-block long rainbow flag all along Copacabana beach.

The International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) is a world
federation of over 350 gay, lesbian, and bisexual organizations from 70
countries.

More than 300 delegates from all over the world participated in this
annual conference that consolidated the strength and diversity of ILGA.
The delegates represented close to 60 countries from Australia to
Zimbabwe, including Russia,Japan,Thailand, and a strong showing from
South and North America and Europe. Every continent was represented.
During this congress, for the first time ever, ILGA welcomed two
transvestite groups into its membership.

As a culmination of 17 years of work, the member organizations of ILGA
have set a process of regionalization in motion, giving the global
movement a more dynamic and locally-responsive organization. Yesterday's
demonstration in Copacabana proved that the gay and lesbian movement is
growing in every part of the world, not only in Europe and North America.

ACTIONS

-The 17th ILGA World Conference involved preparations for the
participation of lesbians in the 4th United Nations World Conference for
Women to take place in Beijing.
-ILGA denounced anti-homosexual violence and assassinations perpetrated
in Brazil and other Latin American countries, as well as executions of
homosexuals in the Middle East.
-ILGA lauds the decriminalization of homosexuality in Tasmania, Australia.
Rodney Croome, one of the main forces behind the favorable court case,
was given the Felipa de Souza Award by IGLHRC of San Francisco (ILGA's
outgoing Action Secretariat), in recognition of his group's work.
-ILGA will iniciate campaigns to denounce the governments of Chile,
Ecuador and Nicaragua that continue to criminalize homosexuality.
-ILGA has continued and will continue to work on AIDS issues all over
the world
-ILGA lauds the positive advances made in many parts of the world such
as the Registered Partnership laws in Sweden, and specifically supported
the bill introduced into the Brazilian Congress by congresswoman Marta
Suplicy (honorary president of the Conference). A national public
opinion poll published yesterday shows a heartening 60% of Brasil's
population in favor of recognizing domestic partnerships - a direct
reflex of the ILGA Conference having been held here.

-Following its efforts to assure its full consultative staus with the
United Nations (ECOSOC), ILGA has ratified all of the human rights
conventions of the United Nations (Rights of the Women, of the Child,
etc...)

ILGA DAY

A symbolic date was chosen to strengthen the sense of unity among the
diverse intercontinental membership of ILGA.  The Association was
founded in Coventry, England on August 8, 1978. This new day of
solidarity and festivity will help orient fundraising activities of
members in all parts of the world to benefit ILGA.

Declarations of the new Secretary Generals.

At this 17th ILGA World Conference, Jordi Petit from Barcelona, Spain
and Inge Wallaert from Antwerp, Belgium were elected as new
Secretaries-General. Jordi Petit brings with him 18 years of activism in
the gay and lesbian movement and is currently Secretary-General of the
Catalunyan group, Coordinadora Gai-Lesbiana. According to Jordi "We
are going to continue to denounce governments of countries which make
homosexuality illegal such as Chile, Ecuador and Nicaragua. We will also
request a meeting with the new president of the European Union (who is a
Spaniard) to talk about the advancement of rights for lesbians and gays
in Europe and its implications for the rest of the world."

Inge Wallaert, in charge of international affairs for FWH, a federation
of 45 Flemish Belgian gay and lesbian groups, declares, "I hope that we
will have the occasion at the Beijing Women's Conference to show lesbian
visibility to the world and obtain favourable results against
discrimination  based on sexual orientation. We need to show the necessity
that gays and lesbians make themselves visible and claim their rights
every day in all parts of the world. As well, ILGA will work to
strengthen its battle against AIDS and its solidarity with those
affected."

****
For more information, contact Andy Quan, Administrative Coordinator,
ILGA at (322-4150) in Rio until July 4th, and after in Brussels
(phone/fax) at 32-2-502-2471.