AN OVERVIEW OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY: BALANCING THE CONTENDING RIGHTS

Abstract

All humans are born free and equal in both dignity and rights and same is recognized and protected under the regime of international law. Thus, any discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is harshly prohibitive and should be generally frowned at. This article is an overview of sexual orientation and gender identity with a view to balancing the contending rights. The work further examines these issues and proffers solutions where necessary. However, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity has been on the increase despite the international legal framework prohibiting same. It is recommended that specific international legal framework prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation be formulated and implementation mechanisms entrenched to guarantee the implementation. Recently at the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council, the issue of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity were properly discussed and deliberated upon. This research work offers an in-depth overview of the different types of sexual orientations and gender identity and the anti-discriminatory mechanisms.