On Sunday 17 May 2020,  the Representative Office of the Republic of Malta in Ramallah, Palestine collaborated with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Palestine, and the  United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) to hold a get together, observing Social Distance, in order to mark the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biophobia (IDAHOT)  , which event took place at UNRWA Head Quarters in East Jerusalem. 

During the event, short speeches were delivered by the Head of UNRWA-Palestine, Ms Gwyn Lewis, the Representative of the Republic of Malta in Ramallah, Palestine, Mr Reuben Gauci and the Head of OHCHR-Palestine, Mr James Heenan, which speeches were followed by a photo of all those present. The theme for this event was “Justice & Protection for All.”  

The Representative of Malta said that for the fifth year running, Malta’s LGBTIQ rights remain one of the most comprehensive for citizens. The Representative said that Malta has, once more, been placed first in the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) ’s European Rainbow Map Index. Mr Gauci said that as humans, we have a tendency of being afraid, but we must not forget that fear can be the cause of making others suffer and therefore, the cause of making ‘The Other’ suffer. The Representative continued that in the spirit of former US President John F Kennedy, we should be saying,  “ I am The Other! ” and cited a direct quote from another US President, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, “ The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself ! ” 

The event was attended by Heads of Mission and Deputy Heads of Mission from Representative Offices – Ramallah and Consulate Generals-Jerusalem from the following countries: Ireland, Denmark, Belgium, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Italy, Austria, Finland, United Kingdom, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Slovenia, Portugal and Bulgaria. 

The EU Representative for the West Bank, Gaza and UNRWA, Mr Sven Kuehn von Burgsdorf was also present.

There were also representatives from the United Nations Special Co-Ordinator’s Office to the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO) , the World Health Organization (WHO) , the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF)  and  the United Nations Development Programme ( UNDP).