When the UN Declaration of Human Rights (1948) was written following World War II, there was little awareness of lesbian and gay rights. The Declaration does not specifically mention sexuality and this weakens its effectiveness for lesbian and gay people. There have been efforts to change this. Brazil tried to get a reference to sexual orientation included in the UN Charter in 2003, but it was blocked by an alliance of Muslim states and the Vatican. 

In 2006, a group of international human rights experts met in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. They produced a set of groundbreaking international legal principles on sexual orientation, gender identity, and international law. The aim was to chart a way forward in terms of rights for lesbians and gays for both the United Nations and governments. The Yogyakarta Principles on the Application of International Human Rights Law in Relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (2007) can be viewed at www.yogyakartaprinciples.org.

The European Convention for Human Rights (1950) does not mention sexuality. However, under the European Convention, the European Court of Human Rights was established in Strasbourg to monitor compliance by Signatory Parties. The European Court of Human Rights (and, prior 1998, the European Commission of Human Rights) have been effective in some cases involving lesbian and gay rights, notably decriminalisation in Northern Ireland (1982), the overturning of the ban on gays in the armed forces (2000) and the reduction of the age of consent to 16, parity with heterosexuals (2001).

Very few countries which have constitutions specifically mention the rights of lesbians and gay people in the constitution itself. South Africa, under Nelson Mandela in 1994, was the first country in the world to give its citizens a constitutional right not to be discriminated against, specifically on the grounds of sexual orientation.

Lesbian and gay rights around the world

Attitudes towards homosexuality vary markedly around the world. The International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) has published a map of LGBTI rights which can be viewed on: www.ilga.org. They distinguish between countries which persecute lesbian and gays (e.g. Iran, where there is the death penalty), those where the laws protect them but do not offer equal rights (e.g. Poland), and those which recognise the rights to equal treatment for lesbians and gays (e.g. the United Kingdom). Having said that, there are large areas of the world where there is no specific legislation relating to lesbians and gays at all.

Although the West is apparently leading on lesbian and gay rights, it is worth pointing out that many of the countries where homosexuality is illegal (eg some of the Caribbean Islands and India) are simply enacting laws which were put in place in Victorian times with the arrival of British colonialism. Prior to British involvement in India, for example, there is considerable evidence that sexual diversity was accepted.

The concept of individual human rights is largely Western in origin. There are many countries where a human rights argument is less effective because the rights of the individual take second place to the demands of family, culture or religion. Marriage, for example, is seen in the West a matter of personal choice. In other countries, marriage may be seen as a non-negotiable duty to family honour, or a religious obligation. 

The prominence and visibility of lesbian and gay activism in the West has led some other countries to argue that homosexuality is the product of Western decadence. This has led some to argue that homosexuality should be 'driven out'. The motivation for this may be to reject the colonialism of the past. For example, in India, examples of Asian homoerotic art were destroyed in order to convey the message that it was the British who brought homosexuality to India. Another motivation may be to whip up anti-Western hatred, as in Iraq, where homophobia has increased dramatically since the US-British invasion. Yet a third reason could be a reaction to globalisation (Western values).

In the USA and Western Europe there are well-developed systems for campaigning for equal rights and fighting homophobia. 

In Middle and Eastern Europe, however, the situation is more confused. Since the fall of communism, many of these countries have wanted to enter the European Union. In order to achieve this, they have decriminalized homosexuality whilst little is actually done to combat homophobia.

In Russia, the rise of the influence of the Russian Orthodox Church since the fall of communism has not served the needs of lesbians and gays well. Lesbian and gay people are not widely accepted. However, despite this, Russia did decriminalise homosexuality in 1993. This move was necessary to gain Western support and to become a member of the Council of Europe. 

In Latin America, whilst society is very dependent on traditional gender roles, there is a degree of tolerance towards same-sex relationships, which are largely understood as sexual experimentation.

Anti-gay hatred is rife in many African countries such as Nigeria, Uganda and Zimbabwe. South Africa is a notable exception because the constitution, passed in 1996, specifically includes lesbian and gay people.

Homosexuality is illegal in Jamaica and it is from here that some overt anti-gay violence arises. Some reggae, rap and hip hop songs encourage violent homophobic acts, including murder. A campaign called 'Stop Murder Music', set up by Peter Tatchell's 'Outrage!' has recently been successful in the cancellation of concerts by some of the most serious offenders.

In Asia, where allegiance to the family and the community is paramount, lesbian and gay groups tend to work by setting up alliances with other oppressed groups. 

Although modern Hinduism seems to be against same-sex relationships, it was traditionally a religion which encompassed sexual diversity. 

In the Arab and Muslim worlds, it is difficult to discuss lesbian and gay issues openly. The Qu'ran states that homosexuality is unnatural, although not all Muslims would accept this. Homosexuality is punishable by death in some Muslim countries, eg Iran and Saudi Arabia.

China and Japan both have many literary references to socially accepted homosexual traditions in their long histories.

In 1997, China removed the term: "hooliganism" from criminal codes. This was understood by many as the de facto decriminalisation of homosexual acts. 

In Japan, travellers might easily gain the impression that Japan is a gay-friendly society, but marriage here is a duty to maintain the family name and the argument that sexual preference makes marriage impossible is not accepted.

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