Yogyakarta Principles Origins and Drafters
The Biased and Corrupt Agenda
The Yogyakarta Principles emerged from a meeting at Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, from November 6 to 9, 2006. The 29 signatories, hailing from 25 countries, these self proclaimed and appointed “experts” included judges, academics, and NGO representatives. However, the pervasive presence of at least nine T+ associated activists - several explicitly tied to “transgender” or LGBTI advocacy - reveals a clear, undeniable ideological slant. These individuals, including “transgender” activists Stephen Whittle and Mauro Cabral, helped shape a document that critics argue serves a narrow, dangerous activist agenda rather than genuinely universal human rights. Even Robert Wintemute, a co-author and professor at Kings College London, has since admitted the principles were a mistake, particularly for failing to consider women’s rights, brutally exposing the flawed foundation of this endeavour.
The Signatories: Who Are They?
Philip Alston (Australia)
Affiliation/Role:
UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, and arbitrary executions; Professor of Law, New York University School of Law.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Maxim Anmeghichean (Moldova)
Affiliation/Role:
European Region of the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA-Europe).
Activist Status:
Known Activist: Prominent LGBTI advocacy through ILGA-Europe.
Mauro Cabral (Argentina)
Affiliation/Role:
Researcher, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba; International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: Sex-deceptionist woman, prominent “transgender” activist, co-chair of YP Plus 10.
Edwin Cameron (South Africa)
Affiliation/Role:
Justice, Supreme Court of Appeal, Bloemfontein.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: AIDS and LGBTI rights activist.
Sonia Onufer Corrêa (Brazil)
Affiliation/Role:
Research Associate, Brazilian Interdisciplinary AIDS Association; Co-chair of the experts’ meeting.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: Sexuality and “gender” policy advocacy through Sexuality Policy Watch.
Yakin Ertürk (Turkey)
Affiliation/Role:
UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women; Professor, Department of Sociology, Middle East Technical University.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Elizabeth Evatt (Australia)
Affiliation/Role:
Former member and chair of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women; Commissioner of the International Commission of Jurists.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Paul Hunt (New Zealand)
Affiliation/Role:
UN Special Rapporteur on the right to the highest attainable standard of health; Professor, Department of Law, University of Essex.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Asma Jahangir (Pakistan)
Affiliation/Role:
Chairperson, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Maina Kiai (Kenya)
Affiliation/Role:
Chairperson, Kenya National Commission on Human Rights.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Miloon Kothari (India)
Affiliation/Role:
UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Judith Mesquita (United Kingdom)
Affiliation/Role:
Senior Research Officer, Human Rights Centre, University of Essex.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Alice M. Miller (United States)
Affiliation/Role:
Assistant Professor, School of Public Health; Co-director, Human Rights Program, Columbia University.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Sanji Mmasenono Monageng (Botswana)
Affiliation/Role:
Judge of the High Court, The Gambia; Commissioner of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Vitit Muntarbhorn (Thailand)
Affiliation/Role:
UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in North Korea; Professor of Law, Chulalongkorn University; Co-chair.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Lawrence Mute (Kenya)
Affiliation/Role:
Commissioner, Kenya National Commission on Human Rights.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Manfred Nowak (Austria)
Affiliation/Role:
Professor and Co-director, Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights; UN Special Rapporteur on Torture.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Ana Elena Obando Mendoza (Costa Rica)
Affiliation/Role:
LGTBIQ+ rights Lawyer & activist, and international consultant.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: LGTBIQ+ rights Lawyer & activist.
Michael O’Flaherty (Ireland)
Affiliation/Role:
Member of the UN Human Rights Committee; Professor, University of Nottingham; Rapporteur.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Sunil Babu Pant (Nepal)
Affiliation/Role:
President of the Blue Diamond Society, Nepal.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: Prominent LGBTI activist, particularly for gay and “transgender” rights.
Dimitrina Petrova (Bulgaria)
Affiliation/Role:
Executive Director, The Equal Rights Trust.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Rudi Muhammad Rizki (Indonesia)
Affiliation/Role:
UN Special Rapporteur on international solidarity; Senior Lecturer, University of Padjadjaran.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Mary Robinson (Ireland)
Affiliation/Role:
Founder of Realizing Rights; former President of Ireland; former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Martin Scheinin (Finland)
Affiliation/Role:
UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Wan Yanhai (China)
Affiliation/Role:
Founder of Aizhixing Institute of Health Education.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: AIDS and LGBTI rights activist.
Stephen Whittle (United Kingdom)
Affiliation/Role:
Professor in Equalities Law, Manchester Metropolitan University.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: Sex-deceptionist woman, prominent “transgender” activist, Press for Change and Transgender Europe.
Roman Wieruszewski (Poland)
Affiliation/Role:
Director, Poznan Human Rights Centre; Member of the UN Human Rights Committee.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Robert Wintemute (Canada/United Kingdom)
Affiliation/Role:
Professor of Human Rights Law, Kings College London.
Activist Status:
Not known as a specific LGBTI activist.
Yoon Hye-Lin (South Korea)
Affiliation/Role:
Director, Korean Sexual-Minority Culture and Rights Center.
Activist Status:
Known Activist: LGBTI activist for sexual minority rights in South Korea.
Note: At least nine of these individuals are confirmed activists based on their explicit involvement in LGBTI or related advocacy. Others may very well have activist leanings, but currently no clear evidence confirms this status.
Further Resources
Exposing the YPs
A critical examination of the Yogyakarta Principles.
What are the YPs?
Understand the Yogyakarta Principles.
Who Created the YPs?
Learn about the creators and their agendas.
Criticisms of the YPs
Examine the flaws and issues with the YPs.
Impacts of the YPs
Explore the consequences of the YPs.
LGB vs. LGBT+
Understand the distinction between LGB and T+.
Resources & Organisations
Find related resources and advocacy groups.
Back to 'Who Are The Sex Deceptionists?'
Explore the broader context of sex deceptionist activism.
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