FIJI has been urged to allow changes in gender to be recorded on birth certificates.
This was one of the recommendations contained in a document by the Human Rights Council Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review for Fiji.
In the document, the committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women recommended that Fiji make the necessary legislative changes and implement a policy to eliminate discrimination, hate speech and violence against lesbians and bisexual and transgender women, including by prosecuting and adequately punishing perpetrators, and conduct awareness-raising activities to address stigma within the society.
The document also highlighted that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Regional Office for the Pacific had noted that despite the constitutional prohibition on discrimination based on sexual orientation, equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons was still a debated topic in Fiji.
They also noted that members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex community had been subjected to violence and discrimination.
Questions sent to the Attorney-General, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum yesterday remained unanswered.
