In the Philippines, crimes against gender non-conforming people have repeatedly been noted by, among others, the Commisssion on Human Rights, USAID, and the UNHRC. And yet, these crimes – from gender-related bashing, to employment-related discrimination, to expulsion from educational institutions, to killings – remain undocumented. So much so that the very lack of data on these crimes are at times equated by many with their absence. It is, therefore, not uncommon to encounter policy-makers who say that since there’s no data to prove our claim that crimes against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people are committed on a day-to-day basis, there is therefore no need to put anti-discrimination policies in place.
It is because of this that Outrage Magazine and The Rainbow Rights (R-Rights) Project Inc. developed #HateWatchPH: Monitoring Crimes Against Gender-non-conforming People in the Philippines in September 2014.
#HateWatchPH has three overarching objectives:
- Increase reporting of gender-based violence and discrimination among gender non-conforming people.
- Increase documentation of gender-based violence and discrimination among gender non-conforming people.
- Increase sustainable response to gender-based violence and discrimination among gender non-conforming people in the Philippines.
