There has been a sharp increase in violence against human rights defenders who work on LGBT+ and sex worker issues during the COVID-19 pandemic.
That’s the findings of a new report that interviewed those defending the rights of LGBT+ people and sex workers in 13 countries.
They reported a stark increase in physical attacks, sexual assault, arrests, raids on their homes, and harassment by security forces in 2020.
Launching the report by Front Line Defenders, activist Amazin LeThi , said: ‘The human rights defenders who gave their stories to this investigation are enduring violent attacks, raids on shelters, arrests, and rampant stigmatization for peacefully demanding access to food, shelter and healthcare for their communities during the