A/HRC/43/50 Gender and inclusion in cultural life 26. Women religious leaders work for full inclusion of women in their faith traditions. For example, Dhammananda Bhikkhuni became the first modern Thai woman to be a fully ordained nun in the Theravada tradition, though she was required to seek ordination outside her home country.17 She is part of a movement of Buddhist nuns challenging the hegemony of men in Buddhist monastic orders in Thailand. In a poem, she explained: “I’m just a small crack in the wall; the wall of patriarchy; on the wall of the hierarchy; on the wall of injustice. Soon there will be more cracks and someday the wall will fall.” Women imams creating women’s mosques and leading inclusive prayer services in numerous cities in which women and men pray side-by-side without dress codes, are also positive developments.18 27. In Mexico, the organization “Diversity, Sports, Sexuality” (DIDESEX) works to develop a more inclusive sports culture. In June 2019, the first lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Pan-American Games were organized in Mexico City as a result of DIDESEX’s efforts. Approximately 1,000 athletes from across the Americas competed.19 Harmful cultural practices 28. Cultural rights defenders work to change cultural practices when they constitute harmful practices and do not comport with contemporary understandings of human rights. For example, women cultural rights defenders in Nepal advocated for an end to a cultural practice, based on an interpretation of Hinduism, that involves confining menstruating women and girls to sleeping sheds and excluding them from ordinary activities based on the belief that menstrual blood is impure, a practice that in some instances led to deaths. 20 The advocacy efforts resulted in the Government of Nepal codifying criminal penalties for anyone who forces a female relative to sleep outside during menstruation, norms which still need implementation.21 Advocates of menstrual justice seeking to normalize periods have used cultural activities, such as the Red Cycle, a period poetry contest begun by a medical student in southern India.22 The right to access and enjoy cultural heritage 29. The Special Rapporteur was pleased to learn of international networking between cultural heritage defenders, such as work by the Penn Cultural Heritage Center at the University of Pennsylvania Museum in the United States with frontline cultural heritage defenders on the ground, including in Afghanistan and Iraq, supporting courageous local protection of heritage. One area of emphasis has been assisting at-risk cultural rights defenders, both by protecting their individual rights when they are forced into exile, and through assistance in resettling them together, and enabling them to continue cultural heritage work in exile. 30. Frontline cultural rights defenders seek to preserve vital tangible and intangible heritage, including in situations of conflict and flight. 23 For example, Syrian women have preserved their culture through storytelling and connecting younger generations to Syrian 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 awaken.com/2012/12/bhikkhuni-dhammananda/; bbc.com/thai/amp/50056107 (in Thai). See, e.g., Jaweed Kaleem, “Progressive Muslims Launch Gay-Friendly, Women-Led Mosques in Attempt to Reform American Islam”, Huffpost, 29 March 2012. See also Alison Hird and Grégoire Sauvage, “French Muslim women push for ‘inclusive’ mosque in Paris”, RFI, 10 January 2019. Lenin Patiño, “Inauguran primera edición de los Panamericanos LGBT”, Milenio, 26 June 2019. www.radhapaudelfoundation.org/; www.nfcc.org.np/menstrual-health-hygiene-and-rights/. Danielle Preiss, “Why it’s hard to ban the menstrual shed”, National Public Radio, 13 May 2019. Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, Periods Gone Public: Taking a Stand for Menstrual Equity (New York, Arcade Publishing, 2017). See also Nikita Azad, “‘A young bleeding woman’ pens an open letter to the ‘keepers’ of Sabrimala Temple”, Youth Ki Awaaz, 20 November 2015. See, e.g., Mwatana for Human Rights, “The degradation of history: violations committed by the warring parties against Yemen’s cultural property”. Available at mwatana.org/en/the-degradation-ofhistory-2/. 7