Sex Workers from Southern Africa Speak Out at the 2008 International Women's Forum

Sex workers from across Southern Africa participated in the November 2008 International Forum on Women's Rights and Development in Cape Town, South Africa to demand respect for their rights, an end to violence, and acknowledgement of sex work as work. more

LGBT Activists Call for Improved Health Care from Kyrgyzstan Medical Professionals

In December 2008, Kyrgyz NGO Labrys organized the first ever training on LGBT health and rights for health care professionals in Kyrgyzstan. The 6-day event, entitled Doctor, That Is For You!, was attended by 14 medical professionals from 3 regions of Kyrgyzstan, specializing in gynecology, psychiatry, urology, neurology and endocrinology. more

Fighting Violence Against Sex Workers in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia

On December 17, the "International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers," members of the Sex Worker Rights Advocacy Network of Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (SWAN) conducted actions in 16 countries to raise awareness about the pervasive violence sex workers experience. more

Advancing the Rights of Sexual Minorities in Malawi

A study released by SHARP grantee the Centre for the Development of People (CEDEP) in 2008 revealed alarmingly high HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Malawi. CEDEP aims to utilize the results of the study to influence Malawi’s national HIV/AIDS strategy to be inclusive of the HIV prevention needs of the MSM population. more

Endorse Human Rights and HIV/AIDS: Now More Than Ever

Twenty-five years into the AIDS epidemic and human rights continue to be a missing component in the fight against AIDS. With the support of OSI’s Public Health Program, a coalition of leading AIDS and human rights organizations and networks co-produced a joint statement titled Human Rights and HIV/AIDS: Now More Than Ever, declaring ten reasons for prioritizing human rights in the global HIV/AIDS struggle. The publication has garnered the endorsements of more than 600 additional organizations throughout the world, and OSI encourages your organization’s endorsement. more

OSI and Partners Organize Anti-Trafficking and Sex Worker Rights Meetings

In December 2008, SHARP collaborated with partners to hold two meetings exploring the rights and health of sex workers and the impacts of anti-trafficking approaches that rely on the criminalization of prostitution. more

A Global Dialogue between the Sex Workers’ Rights Movement and the Stop Violence Against Women Movement

SHARP, with OSI's International Women's Program, supported this collaborative March dialogue in Bangkok, Thailand. Organized by Creating Resources for Empowerment in Action and Centre for Advocacy on Stigma and Marginalization, the dialogue brought together advocates from the women's and sex workers' rights movements to better understand the nature and drivers of the violence faced by sex workers, and identify rights-based strategies to reduce this violence. more

International Human Rights Funders Group Semi-Annual Conference

SHARP, the Global Fund for Women, and the Channel Foundation worked in collaboration with the International Human Rights Funders Group’s (IHRFG) Sexual Health and Rights Working Group to organize and sponsor the closing plenary session of the IHRFG meeting that took place January 26-27 in San Francisco. The plenary highlighted innovative efforts by activists working to advance the human rights of sexual minorities. more

Sex Workers in Kenya Face Glaring Human Rights Violations

In the report "Documenting Human Rights Violations of Sex Workers in Kenya," the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA Kenya) details the abuses experienced by sex workers in six locations in Kenya, and analyzes the policy framework that undermines sex workers' access to rights. more

New Resources to Advance Sex Workers' Health and Rights

"Resources for Sex Workers' Health and Rights" is a multi-lingual collection of materials to advance the health and rights of sex workers, developed as a joint effort between the International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe and the European Network for HIV/STI Prevention and Health Promotion among Migrant Workers. more

Kyrgyzstan Health Care System Rife with Abuse, Say Sex Workers and other Marginalized Groups

Four reports sponsored by SHARP, the Law and Health Initiative, the International Harm Reduction Development Program, and Soros Foundation—Kyrgyzstan provide shocking evidence of widespread human rights violations and abuses against marginalized groups in hospitals and clinics throughout Kyrgyzstan. more