Realising Sexual Rights

A meeting report from the IDS Sexuality and Development Programme.

In late September 2005, an unusual combination of people gathered together with considerable excitement at the (generally rather sober) Institute of Development Studies in Brighton. They included two Beijing lesbian activists; a civil servant from the Swedish Foreign Ministry; a Gambian woman mobilising against female genital mutilation; a South African feminist researcher; two Brazilian men who promote more egalitarian masculinities; a transgender artist from Peru; an Egyptian advocate for the right to privacy; and a former sex worker/masseur who now works for a development NGO. During the course of the three-day workshop participants talked, laughed, danced and bonded. Many gained new friends, new ideas and renewed energy for action. This publication attempts to capture some of the inspiration arising from this exploration of sexuality and development connections.