UN Secretary General defies members on ‘reproductive rights,’ homosexuality
GENEVA, September 21, 2012, ( C-FAM )— UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon courted controversy last week when he told nations on the Human Rights Council to place lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual rights and reproductive rights at the forefront of the United Nations human rights agenda. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Ban Ki-moon addressed UN delegations at the opening of the 21st regular session of the Human Rights Council, applauded the work of the Council in 2012, and said that “in particular, I welcome the groundbreaking, first-ever intergovernmental discussion, in March this year, on discrimination and violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity.” The Secretary General was referring to a highly controversial panel discussion on LGBT rights that took place during the last regular session of the Human Rights Council. Seventeen of the 47 states that are members of the Human Rights Council staged a walk out on the panel of experts. On that occasio