COMMENTARY: Women and Girls: Asia Pacific Lesbians, Bisexual and Trans Women Left Out in the Cold

The international conference of National Human Rights Institutes in Amman, Jordan, focusing on protecting and promoting the rights of women and girls, was an extraordinary opportunity for human rights commissions around the world to publicly declare and commit to advancing the rights of, not some, but all women and girls. Sadly it was a missed opportunity. Representatives from nearly 70 National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) from Africa, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas gathered in Amman, Jordan, November 5 to 7, for a conference to discuss the role of these institutions to protect and promote the rights of women and girls. Civil society activists from about 100 non-governmental organizations around the world also gathered for a "parallel" forum, organized by the Amman Center for Human Rights, to discuss best practices for women's rights NGOs to engage with National Human Rights Institutions. I participated in both.