Trump Administration Votes "AGAINST" UN Resolution That Would Ban Death Penalty For Gays For Member Countries

The United Nations Human Rights Council has voted to condemn the death penalty for being gay.
Although the resolution passed with 27 countries voting for the measure – 13 countries including the United States voted against.
Being gay is still punishable by death in six countries including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen.
Similarly, gay people are also being killed in so-called ISIS-held territories in Northern Iraq and Northern Syria.
Although not countrywide, there are also parts of Nigeria and Somalia where the death penalty is in use against LGBT people too.
However, this resolution doesn’t call for an end to death as punishment. It asks countries who have the death penalty to ensure they do not use it in a ‘discriminatory manner.’

It calls for an end to using the death penalty for anyone:

• with intellectual disabilities
• below 18 years of age at the time of the crime
• pregnant women
• for apostasy
• blasphemy
• adultery
• consensual same-sex relations

Responding to the vote, Renato Sabbadini, Executive Director of The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) says:
‘It is unconscionable to think that there are hundreds of millions of people living in States where somebody may be executed simply because of whom they love.

‘This is a monumental moment where the international community has publicly highlighted that these horrific laws simply must end.’
This is not the first time the UN has made this kind of statement.
More than a decade ago, the now-disbanded UN Human Rights Commission passed a similar resolution. The United Nations General Assembly in New York also passes a resolution on ‘extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.’
However, this resolution is the first by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
There were six attempts by Egypt, Russia, and Saudi Arabia to change the resolution.
These are the 13 countries that voted against the resolution:

• Bangladesh
• Botswana
• Burundi
• China
• Egypt
• Ethiopia
• India
• Iraq
• Japan
• Qatar
• Saudia Arabia
• The United Arab Emirates
• United States

However, despite submitting several changes, Russia is not able to vote.
An extensive campaign by human rights groups opposing Russian membership because of its role in the bombing of Syrian cities led to them being denied a place on the council in 2016.
André du Plessis, Head of UN Programme and Advocacy at ILGA says:
‘We are grateful for the leadership of the eight countries that brought this resolution – Belgium, Benin, Costa Rica, France, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, and Switzerland.’

Above all adding, ‘they stood firm on principle through a difficult negotiation and voting period.’