ERAO SVG calls upon St Vincent and the Grenadines to end LGBTQ+ discrimination

ERAO SVG said it has received information and observed that LGBTQ+ persons in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) experience various forms of violence and discrimination.

In a release, it has identified employment
as one of the areas where violence and discrimination is practised against this population
group.

Among other things, this was noted in Human Rights Watch’s 2023 report, “They Can Harass Us Because of the Laws” Violence and Discrimination against LGBT People in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines”.

The organisation, which advocates for the LGBTQ+ community, said as well that LGBTQ+ persons in SVG experience discrimination during the different phases of employment- from recruitment, to termination. ERAO SVG said it also notes that some LGBTQ+ persons are afraid to publicly express and identify themselves in the workplace for fear of discrimination, and this has led among other things, to a lack of representation of ‘out and proud’ LGBTQ+ persons serving at various levels of Vincentian society. If they are in these positions, many of them often hide who they are. In particular, ERAO SVG said it also observes that as far as it is currently aware, no elected political official publicly identifies as LGBTQ+ in SVG. “Our elected officials should represent the people and have people coming from a wide diversity of backgrounds,” it argues, adding that, “sadly, the local environment is not very enabling, and this situation is not made better because the State lacks specific protections, particularly specific laws and regulations, that explicitly protect LGBTQ+ persons from discrimination in employment”.

Further, that failure to protect LGBTQ+ persons in the area of employment affects every facet of their life, including their ability to earn a livelihood, take care of themselves, and their dependents.

This, it said, exacerbates and makes LGBTQ+ persons in SVG vulnerable to various forms of abuse, exploitation, and poverty, with some persons having been reported to be homeless and/or begging on the streets.

ERAO SVG said it reminds the State that everyone, including LGBTQ+ persons, has the right to work and that it has a positive obligation (it must and should take action) to fulfil this right for everyone in SVG. Article 23 (1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that,

“Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment”. It pointed out that SVG is a State party to such declarations as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. ERAO SVG therefore, it calls upon the State of SVG to guarantee and protect the right to work without discrimination for LGBTQ+ persons during all phases of the employment process.