The International
Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, in
collaboration with AsylumLaw.org. announced the launch of
its new online library documenting examples of human
rights abuses and violations based on sexual
orientation, gender identity, or HIV status. The library,
which is free to access, is meant as a resource for
political asylum seekers and their advocates to gather
proof of abuses in their home country.
The library is
available at
https://www.iglhrc.org/site/iglhrc/section.php?id=20.
Visitors can then view an individual country packet
that contains an extensive human rights profile of
that country. In addition to the 144 different country
packets, there are three thematic packets that pertain
to the Islamic world, lesbian issues, and transgender
issues.
"We get nearly 40
requests a week from people who call and need
information to support their claims," said Dusty
Araujo, asylum documentation program coordinator
at IGLHRC. "By having our country packets online, it
will be easier and more efficient to get the
documentation out quickly to asylum seekers. When people are
forced to flee a country, they take very little with
them and usually not the information that shows or how
why they were persecuted." (The Advocate)