Let the Courts Decide

Singapore activists challenge gay sex ban in court after India ruling

Singapore’s top court has heard challenges to its colonial-era gay sex law, a thorny issue in the socially-conservative city-state, for the first time since similar legislation was scrapped in India last year. The initial hearing of the cases was held on Wednesday and will continue over the next few weeks.

South Korea: 1,056 LGBTQs in South Korea filed complaints to the Civil Rights Commission for recognition of rights for same-sex couples

1,056 LGBTQs in South Korea filed mass complaints to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) for recognition of rights for same-sex couples in a press conference in Seoul, Korea.

Jamaica: LGBT battles Gov’t at IACHR today

Jamaica’s anti-same-sex laws will today again be thrown into the international spotlight when the powerful Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, IAHCR, which is an arm of the Organization of American States, hears the petition brought by Aids Free World on behalf of two Jamaican LGBTQ petitioners alleging that Jamaica is in breach of the American Convention on Human Rights.

Turkey: Charges Against 19 LGBTI+ Rights Defenders Must Be Dropped

Civil Rights Defenders, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Front Line Defenders and International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA-Europe) call upon Turkish authorities to drop all charges against 19 LGBTI+ rights defenders due to stand trial on 12 November 2019 in Ankara

US: Administration sues drugmaker Gilead Sciences over patent on Truvada for HIV prevention

A rift between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and pharmaceutical giant Gilead Sciences ruptured further Wednesday when the Trump administration sued Gilead in U.S. District Court, asserting that Gilead made billions of dollars on HIV prevention therapy while repeatedly ignoring government patents.

Malaysia sentences five men to jail, caning and fines for gay sex

A Malaysian religious court sentenced five men on Thursday to jail, caning and fines for attempting gay sex, media and a rights group said. Sodomy and same-sex acts are illegal under Islamic law in Muslim-majority Malaysia, although convictions are rare.

US: New York judge tosses Trump administration's conscience rule

A federal judge in New York tossed the Trump administration's "conscience rule" that would allow health plans and providers to refuse to cover or perform services like abortion, contraception or gender transition procedures that they oppose on religious or moral grounds.