Historic LGTB conference hailed a success

Transcript

The organiser of an historic conference on sexual diversity and orientation in the Pacific says the region is becoming more open to the subject matter.

The Pacific Sexual Diversity Network's Isikeli Vulavou says a conference in Tonga brought together 70 regional representatives from 12 countries from the Lesbian-Gay-Transgender-Bisexual community for the first time.

Mr Vulavou told Koro Vaka'uta the meeting was a great success.

ISIKELI VULAVOU: One of the major objectives of this conference was to bring the LGBTIQ, (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender, Inter-sex, Queer), people together because we were not sure how organised they were in different countries.  We thought it was very important to organise a regional event like this where we can get people, like individuals or LGBTIQ organisations in the Pacific who are already doing some work and provide this space where we can organise better and also have a more rigid movement in the Pacific.  Our conference is also about bringing in these people to share ideas, information, strategies and programmes to affirm our dignity, equality and security of the LGBTIQ communities and individuals in the Pacific.  We also used this conference to update these organisations about international human rights law and other recent international developments.

KORO VAKA'UTA:  The Pacific is known or renown to be quite a conservative community.  Do you feel that the Pacific region is becoming more receptive to the issues that surround the LGBT community?

IV:  In Polynesia, they have been accepting of transgender like the fa'afafine, akava'ine and the Tongan leitis for years and for like other regions like Meleanesia there is change that is observed where we are seeing increased community acceptance to persons of diverse sexual orientation and gender identity.

KV:  I did see in some of the Tongan papers some protests around the conference.  What's your response to people are still concerned and maybe feel that culturally and traditionally there is no real place for this?

IV:  We're happy that they are given the freedom to exercise their right of demonstrating like that.  We are also thankful to the Tongan government for allowing us to have this conference here.  They are entitled to their opinions and rights and we appreciate and recognise that but we also need them to respect our rights.  We have are a few governments that have the sexual orientation and gender identity clause and even during the opening we had the deputy prime minister of Tonga and we were lucky to have Her Royal Highness Honourable Princess Salote Lupepau'u.  She was inspiration to each one of us because she was present.