Unión Afirmativa [Affirmative Union] was formed on November 24, 2000 with the purpose of ensuring the application of international standards for protecting homosexual persons against discrimination based on their sexual orientation in Venezuela. To this day it continues to be the tireless voice of the LGBTI rights in the country.
La Asociación Civil Unión Afirmativa de Venezuela [The Civil Association Affirmative Union of Venezuela] is a non-profit organisation that has been working since 2002 to promote knowledge and application of international human rights standards that protect people from discrimination based on sexual orientation. “In particular, we promote the legal protection of same-sex couples, according to the recommendations issued by different bodies within the universal system of protection of human rights and the Inter-American system,” said Quiteria Franco, general coordinator of the NGO.
Affirmative Union is an organisation that not only seeks legal recognition of same-sex relationships and same-sex families but also works for the rights of LGBTI people, the protection of trans and intersex people and women against gender violence. It is the only sexual minorities NGO in the country that has obtained a ruling by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) on the rights of the social group through the Sentence 190-2008. Furthermore, it successfully pushed for the inclusion of the same-sex couples register in the 2011 national census.
Their trayectory have allowed them to carry the LGBT flag and have earned them a reputation in Venezuela as a key organisation in the safeguarding of the rights of the population.
“Originally, we were campaigning for the prompt legal recognition of same-sex couples and all the rights that derive from that civil union. Little by little, we have been expanding our activities and today we are doing research, documentation and reporting on the human rights situation of LGBTI people, activism and national and international advocacy”, explained the advocate.
The crisis also affects LGBTI rights
The human rights crisis that exists in Venezuela has made LGBTI people even more invisible. The priorities on the political agenda are forged in crisis and generalised without differentiating between gendered experiences; often these are seen as “first world problems” or something that can be resolved later. Faced with this barrier, Affirmative Union aspires and works towards ensuring the current situation leads citizens to reflect on the consequences of discrimination.
“We have seen how more than half of the population has been discriminated against due to their political preference, and each individual has suffered the consequences of this discrimination against anyone who thinks contrary to the current ruler; as well as the privilege granted to members of the ruling class, to the detriment of everyone seen as opposition or simply critical. In this way, it is absurd and incomprehensible to continue discriminating against other people due to their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, their skin colour, their physical appearance, a disability or for any other reason.”
For the organisation it is also important to reorient their actions and activities to try to help bring a response to the population suffering from the complex humanitarian emergency, never ceasing to stress it is the responsibility of the State to ensure the welfare of its citizens, nor abandoning the defence of human rights. One action does not exclude the other and, in fact, both are closely related.
“The Venezuelan State has failed in its obligation to protect its citizens, violating human rights directly or indirectly, therefore, organisations must denounce this situation and at the same time help as much as possible to alleviate the suffering of the population, particularly LGBTI people who suffer in different ways ” said Franco.
Towards reconstruction and respect for differences
In Affirmative Union the work of formation, qualification and education on human rights is integral; it is something they drive from all sides.
“Formal education must be rethought, re-structured and modernized, to a more open one, with a focus on human rights and a gender perspective. We must train citizens to be aware of their rights, but also of their obligations and responsibilities. Venezuelan society must go through a process of modification. We need a society in which equality and non-discrimination prevail as two fundamental principles. The values must be attached to the ethical, instead of the moral,” the general coordinator of the organisation said while speaking about how we can move towards a new society in which discrimination and corruption are unanimously rejected by all.
Finally, the activist points out that the best way to support the Affirmative Union is to participate in the activities they carry out on a permanent basis, follow them through social networks and share information about the work they do with anyone who wants or may need to learn about their rights.
