The Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Parades
are being organized around the world to raise awareness about the need
to encourage respect and equality towards the LGBT community. Each
country has set different dates to celebrate their own Pride Parade in
order to commemorate certain significant LGBT related historical events
that occurred in their own local communities.
But if there is one date that the LGBT people around the
world celebrate together simultaneously, it is the IDAHO day. IDAHO
stands for International Day against Homophobia and it is being
celebrated every May 17 ever since it was conceived in the year 2004.
May 17 was chosen as the day to celebrate IDAHO day because this date is
the anniversary of the World Health Organization’s May 1990 decision to
remove homosexuality from its list of mental disorders. This victory of
the LGBT cause was a very historical step towards the consideration of
the freedom of sexual orientation and gender identity as a fundamental
human basic right.
Today, IDAHO is sometimes called IDAHOBIT where the letters
BIT were added to represent the words Biphobia and Transphobia.
The plan to create a day to commemorate this glorious day in
1990 began in the year 2004 and a year later in May 17 in the year 2005,
24,000 individuals as well as organizations such as the International
Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA), the International Gay and Lesbian
Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), the World Congress of LGBT Jews, and
the Coalition of African Lesbians signed an appeal to support the
IDAHOBIT initiative. The first IDAHOBIT activities took place in many
countries including the first LGBT events ever to take place in the
Congo, China, and Bulgaria and are now being celebrated every year.
Commemorating IDAHO emphasizes that in reality, homophobia is
a shameful attitude and should be discouraged because it lacks moral
reasoning. In practice, IDAHO helps the LGBT members of the society
bring up the issue in the formal debates within our governing and
legislating institutions, schools and neighbourhoods. In addition,
individuals who are concerned about the problem of homophobia but cannot
organize a local version of a Pride Parade due to the restrictions
against LGBTs imposed by their own governments are nonetheless provided
a means to voice out their concerns through the IDAHO day which are
allowed to be celebrated in other countries simultaneously. A campaign
against homophobia may be undertaken on the Global Day against
Homophobia, particularly where, officially at least, homosexuality is
not condemned by laws. In this way, the Global Day may constitute a
political lever for individuals or countries that cannot participate in
the organization of Pride marches.
The LGBT citizens here in the Philippines are currently
facing different social attitudes and legal challenges more than the
heterosexual citizens. But tolerance for the LGBT people has increased
over the years due to greater education about sexual orientation and
gender identity issues and the growing visibility and political activism
of the LGBT community in this country.
The Philippines is a predominantly Christian country, with
the majority being Roman Catholic followed by other Christian
denominations and a large Muslim minority. And all these religions
spread anti-homosexual teachings the affect the LGBT people. Even the
Catholic Bishop Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has always been
against LGBT rights. But amidst all the homophobia influenced by these
religions, the LGBT community is accepted in other sectors of the
society particularly in the field of media, fashion and the arts. The
Philippine Military is also allowing openly gay and bisexual men and
women to enlist and serve in the Armed Services. But same sex marriages
and LGBT adoption of children are not legally recognized and the LGBT
community in the Philippines is not protected by any civil rights laws.
Last year in 2012, the LGBT community commemorated the
IDAHO day by organizing a march from the University of the Philippines
College of Social Sciences and Philosophy towards the Commission on
Human Rights (CHR). The march was organized as a call to end hate,
violence, inequality and discrimination towards the LGBT people. The
event was held in memory of the 156 Filipino LGBTs who have been
murdered since 1996. The activists who participated in this event
called on the government to acknowledge that hate crimes against LGBT
people are serious problems that must be given a high priority, to
ensure that the government agencies take the initiative in addressing
the issue. The participants of the march also demanded that the
government help raise awareness about the ongoing hate crimes against
the LGBT people. This activity last year commenced with a tree planting
activity by planting “rainbow trees” to symbolize the growing
partnership and activism among the civil society, LGBT communities and
groups, and the government as they work together to acknowledge and
defend the LGBT rights in this country.
This year in 2013, the commemoration of the IDAHO day on May
17 will be celebrated in three parts.
The first part is to be held in the Commission on Human
Rights Office where the LGBT groups and the government will organize a
forum to discuss the ongoing discrimination issues facing the LGBT
people today.
The second part is to be celebrated in Cubao Expo in Quezon
City where the LGBT groups will have a night of wine toasting as a call
against LGBT discrimination. During this event, IDAHO organizers will
also present certificates of recognition to private establishments who
has been accepting and still willing to continue their commitment to
accept the LGBT community openly in their businesses. The project is to
be called Tagay for IDAHO (Cheers for IDAHO) - The Safe Space Project.
The third part of the IDAHO commemoration is to be celebrated
in the Boho Sarapsody Bistro, also in Quezon City, and it is entitled
Hayag (Stories). The celebration is going to be a night of LGBT
stories, poetry, music and art in celebration of the International Day
against Homophobia.
The Philippines has already come a long way when it comes to
the LGBT equality and human rights. But the IDAHO day celebration is a
reminder to everyone that the ideal equality that the LGBT community in
the Philippines are hoping for is still far in the horizon. And PATAS
as a humanist organization that recognizes those rights are in tune with
the LGBT community in the Philippines to celebrate IDAHO with them.
By Vladimir Atheistmov
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