Gay Rights Supporters Win 2nd Victory at the United Nations

Supporters of gay rights have won a major victory at the United Nations with the failure of a second African attempt to stop a U.N. independent expert from investigating violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation.

After a first defeat Nov. 21 in the General Assembly's human rights committee, African nations led by Burkina Faso attempted again Monday to suspend the work of the first LGBT expert. But the result was almost identical.

Those countries sought to delay implementation of a U.N. Human Rights Council resolution to determine "the legal basis" for the expert's mandate.

Opponents introduced an amendment to eliminate the call for a delay. It was adopted by a vote of 84-77 with 16 abstentions, virtually the same as the committee's 84-77 vote with 12 abstentions.