Report of the Conference 1. Introduction Ten years ago, from 6-9 November 2006, a distinguished group of human rights experts met at the Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta (Indonesia) which initiated the process of drafting, developing and refining a set of principles on the application of international human rights law in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity. These principles were unanimously adopted by 29 distinguished experts from 25 countries with diverse backgrounds and expertise relevant to issues of human rights law, which became known as the Yogyakarta Principles on the Application of International Human Rights Law in relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (Yogyakarta Principles).1 The signatories of the Yogyakarta Principles consisted of international human rights scholars, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) advocates and representatives from Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) and United Nations (UN) agencies. The Yogyakarta Principles (the Principles) included 29 principles, and each includes a statement of international human rights law and guidance to States about their duty to implement the legal obligation. The Principles also include 16 recommendations directed to a number of other parties, including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, treaty monitoring bodies, NHRIs, commercial organisations and other parties. The experts agreed that the Principles reflected the existing state of international human rights law in relation to issues of sexual orientation and gender identity at the time they were drafted. They also recognise that States may incur additional obligations as human rights law continues to evolve.2 Following their official launch in Geneva on 26 March 2007, the Principles were widely disseminated and promoted by NGOs, NHRIs experts and advocates at a variety of regional and interregional events. Over time, the Principles have been supplemented by the release of supporting materials, including guides for activists, jurisprudential annotations and training guides for NHRIs and NGOs. Since their release, international human rights scholars have written extensively about the effectiveness and appropriateness of the Principles in promoting and protecting human rights relevant to sexual orientation and gender identity. The 10-year anniversary of the Yogyakarta Principles was a timely opportunity to bring together CSOs, NHRIs, UN agencies and academics to reflect on the development of the Principles, the ways in which they have been used to promote and protect the rights of LGBTI people, the barriers and challenges encountered in using the Principles and possible future directions. The conference titled “Celebrating 10 years of the Yogyakarta Principles: What have we learnt and where to now?” provided an effective platform for human rights scholars, LGBTI advocates and representatives from NGOs and NHRIs, not only to reflect on the past, but also to explore future developments and opportunities to collaborate further. 1 The Yogyakarta Principles, available at: www.yogyakartaprinciples.org/introduction/. 2 Ibid. 5