Foreign Policy
Australia has the opportunity to better support LGBTIQ+ people in the Asia Pacific region and globally by:
- Funding LGBTIQ+ community groups in our region to help prevent legal and social stigma and discrimination
- Championing LGBTIQ+ rights in bilateral and multilateral diplomacy
- Including LGBTIQ+ people in Australia’s overseas development assistance
In the lead-up to Sydney WorldPride 2023, Equality Australia and the Global Philanthropy Project (GPP) built a coalition of Asia and Pacific regional partner organisations to advocate for greater action by the Australian Government on LGBTIQ+ rights overseas. Together, we launched the Partnering with Pride report and engaged intensively with DFAT and the Foreign Minister’s Office.
The coalition released a major report:
Partnering with Pride: The case for Australian action on equality in our region.
During the Sydney WorldPride Human Rights Conference, the Foreign Minister Senator Penny Wong announced a package of reforms that responded to the calls to action in the report.
- An Inclusion and Equality Fund with an initial $3.5 million in 2022-23 to support LGBTQIA+ civil society organisations and human rights defenders, international partnerships and networks in Asia and the Pacific.
- A dedicated LGBTQIA+ human rights engagement strategy for the region including bilateral and multilateral diplomacy, development and humanitarian assistance.
- The first ever Human Rights Ambassador to lead Australia’s advocacy for LGBTQIA+ equality, supported by the Ambassador for Gender Equality.
- An LGBTQIA+ unit within DFAT.
Equality Australia is continuing to work with our Asia and Pacific regional LGBTQIA+ networks and GPP on the implementation of these initiatives and to increase support and funding over time.
