APCOM session at the 15th AWID International Forum, Bangkok, Thailand 4 December 2024

Contributor:
Naomi Fontanos

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On 2-5 December 2024, the 15^th AWID International Forum took place at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) in Bangkok, Thailand. Organized by the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID), a global organization committed to advancing women’s rights, feminism, and gender justice, the AWID International Forum is a global platform for participants to engage in meaningful discourse and forge new alliances in the pursuit of gender equality worldwide. 

Supported by:

APCOM, through its Global Affairs Canada (GAC) project Supporting LGBQTI Rights in Asia: Connecting Voices for LGBTQI Socio-Economic Inclusion and Human Rights in Asia, held a session on 4 December 2025 at 16:15 – 17:30 at Room 102 of the QSNCC on LBTQ in Southeast Asia Speaking Up. The session featured the five women-led organizations of the GAC project in five countries: Love is Diversity (LID) in Cambodia, Srikandi Pakuan in Indonesia, Takienglao in Laos People’s Democratic Republic (PDR), LBTQ Organization against Violence and for Equality (LOVE) in the Philippines and Health and Opportunity in Thailand. The speakers of this event include: Socheata ‘Cheetah’ Long (LID), Gaby Septiani (Srikandi Pakuan) with translation from Bambang Prayudi (Perkumpulan Suara Kita), Phailinh ‘Dada’ Keutla (Takienglao), Leslie Ampoan (LOVE), and Thissadee Sawangying (HON). The session was attended by 50 people. 

The event was graced by the Canadian Ambassador to Thailand, Her Excellency Ms. Ping Kitnikone who provided keynote remarks on the challenges of economic opportunities for LBTQ women due to access to education and entering the workforce, as a lot of their work remains unpaid. She emphasised that Canada also has its challenges when it comes to gender equality, and through Canada’s support to build connections and continue to advance discussions internationally through its Feminist International Assistance Policy, she’s pleased to see through the project that LBTQ communities in Southeast Asia can take the stage and advocate for their own communities in a global forum such as the AWID conference.   

The session focused on the work being done to advocate for lesbian, bisexual, and transgender men’s and women’s rights in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Philippines, and Thailand. Organisational Diagnosis (OD) results, Concept Note and sub-grant implementation, dreams and aspirations were discussed at the panel, including challenges of LBTQ organizations in doing advocacy work, how involvement in the project helped enable advocacy work for LBTQ organizations, ensuring sustainability of LBTQ organizations in Southeast Asia.

As part of the Global Affairs Canada (GAC)-funded project Supporting LGBQTI Rights in Asia: Connecting Voices for LGBTQI Socio-Economic Inclusion and Human Rights in Asia, you had to undergo an organizational diagnosis (OD).

Could you talk about the results of your OD report?

Gaby (Indonesia): Based on the results of our OD carried out by APCOM, our institution has the principles of kinship, mutual cooperation and humanitarian principles as well as a fighting spirit in providing support to the LBTI community, especially trans women. The Srikandi Pakuan Panggah Foundation is a foundation that operates on the basis of upholding democratic values ​​and human rights principles, to achieve equality. From the results of the OD carried out, there are several weaknesses and strengths as well as the need to strengthen our institution. 

That is:

Disadvantages: institutions that still lack human resources (HR) and budget resources (BR) are one of the things we face, especially regarding HR and management capacity, both in terms of program and budget management. And the existence of discriminatory policies in our area becomes an obstacle in the space to carry out our work. 

Strength: Apart from the weaknesses we face and the obstacles we face, our strength is that our foundation has obtained legal standing that is recognized by the state and has an extensive network at both community and government stakeholder levels. This is our strategic step in carrying out an advocacy movement towards equality. 

Need for Capacity Strengthening: from the results of the OD and training needs analysis (TNA) conducted, of course many things were obtained, there are recommendations we really need including: 

• Proposal writing, particularly in the context of promoting human rights and gender equality, and proactively building partnerships for projects.
• Roles, duties and responsibilities of Board members and related policies safety and security operations, security and protection. 
• Project design, project cycle management, especially budget preparation (including core cost recovery), risk management, staffing, and monitoring, evaluation and learning. 
• Story gathering, communication and marketing strategy design
• During the TNA activity process carried out by APCOM, we have several capacity development needs:
• Knowledge of human rights and law in Indonesia;
• Concept note preparation, proposal development, and awareness of best practices and reporting;
• Effective public speaking and data presentation;
• Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), safety and security systems for internal organizations; and 
• Development of social media content and/or storytelling 

Leslie (the Philippines): The OD was conducted together with the current leaders and members of LOVE. The questions included are about our origins, our current activities and projects, and our policies. This process was incredibly significant for us as it allowed us to identify our capabilities and needs as a collective, as well as evaluate the progress of our programs in achieving the organization’s goals and aspirations. The focus area of recommendations based on the OD reports are: a) development/enhancement of organization policies and programs; b) periodic review of new laws, policies, gender analysis tools and enabling mechanisms; and c) multi-sectoral partnerships and networking.

Cheetah (Cambodia): Our OD report has identified key areas for organizational capacity building:

1. Organizational and Institutional Support and Recognition: We’re not officially registered yet, so we’re all volunteers working in our spare time. That really limits what we can do and how fast we can move. 
2. Organizational and Financial Sustainability: Our organizational structure is still under development, and we lack clear policies and procedures. Our team’s experience is primarily with short-term projects, which limits our capacity for long-term initiatives. To address these challenges, we need to improve our skills in fundraising, proposal development, project management, financial management, and budgeting.
3. Advocacy and Activism: While our team is dedicated to advocating for LGBTQI rights and gender equality, we recognize that there are gaps in our understanding of relevant concepts and mechanisms, as well as in our collaboration skills. We need to strengthen these areas to do more effective advocacy.
4. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning: Our team needs to strengthen our capacity for monitoring, evaluation, and learning to better assess and measure the impact of our advocacy efforts. These are the key findings and recommendations from the OD report that our team should prioritize.

Thissadee (Thailand): Our Organizational Diagnosis (OD) showed us that we needed to lay a strong foundation for our organization. We need to develop the potential of the organization, prepare the organization also, and find needs. Even though there is no budget for us to register HON in Thailand, registering a foundation requires about 200,000-500,000 Thai Baht but at least it helps with preparation. We also need to set goals for the future. We have time to see what the future should be like in which direction to go, and we can determine strategically how to reach each goal. Of course, we still need long-term support to drive the issues of human rights and gender equality, which must have long-term strategies and support. 

Dada (Laos): Our organization is one of the organizations in Lao PDR that received funding from APCOM under the GAC project, to implement activities in southern Laos to promote understanding of diversity work in ethnic groups, and we have also participated in the OD developed by a consultant of the APCOM team. The results of our OD states that we are an all-woman team and also have volunteers, some of whom are from the LGBTQI community. So, we have a committed volunteer base to support implementation of program outreach activities. LGBTQI inclusion was not previously a focus of our programming. We will integrate LGBTQI into programming under the organization’s five-year strategic plan. Moving forward, we are considering setting up a dedicated LGBTQI section within the organization to address the specific needs of the community. In line with this commitment, we will enhance our capacity to work with the LGBTQI community.

You used this OD report as the basis for a Concept Note you submitted to APCOM to obtain a sub-grant. Could you tell us about your Concept Notes?

Dada (Laos): We have worked directly with the target group, especially the ethnic group and those living in remote areas, which group is a disadvantaged group, whether it is in terms of education or access to health services that are very difficult in terms of access to various modernities, including violence against women and the lack of human rights in various areas that are also considered as a very important problem. So, our organization has brought the results of the OD report to create a Concept Note (CN) in sending for approval for the implementation of the activity. We focused on the participation of the government sector, civil society and beneficiary groups to participate in activities more on the basis of gender equality and the understanding of government sector partners and partners around various sectors, which may take time but we believe that we can implement it, so we have a Concept Note (CN) based on the results of the OD report and modified to fit the conditions of the target area

Leslie (the Philippines): After reading the OD report, we realized how important it is for our group. It revealed areas we need to address, including the need for training in aspects where we lack sufficient skills, such as managing our social media accounts and creating an operations manual. We are deeply grateful to APCOM and GAC because, from the organizational diagnosis onwards, they never left us behind. They also assisted us in developing a Concept Note (CN) by providing training and answering our questions.

Cheetah (Cambodia): As you know, our team is quite small, and our members’ capacity and availability are limited. So, our Concept Note (CN) is still being finalized. But thanks to your support, Naomi, for your feedback, and for your understanding, APCOM has been incredibly flexible and extended our project deadline to September next year. We really appreciate that. We plan to focus on these key areas from the OD report: 1. Organizational and Financial Sustainability: We’ll work on building a stronger organization and improving our skills in long-term project management, proposal writing, financial management, budgeting, and reporting; 2. Advocacy and Activism: We’ll provide training to our members on LGBTQ+ rights, gender equality, and advocacy strategies; and 3. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning: We’ll work on developing a system to measure our impact and track our progress. We think that working on these areas will help us get ready for our future work and long-term projects.

Thissadee (Thailand): Working together under the same source of support helps to exchange knowledge, understand the problems of friends in each country, and see the support of each other. For our Concept Note (CN) we made sure it was a view of possibilities at the national level and a view of ways to build an international network. We know that there is hope for joint development with friends through the same project or umbrella. 

What is important is to elevate the problems in the area, the voices of the community, to drive policy at the national and regional levels. 

Gaby (Indonesia): The results of the OD and TNA are our benchmarks in carrying out Institutional Analysis and designing institutional programs as well as creating a Concept Note (CN). There are two (2) large activities consisting of small sub-activities which we wrote in the concept, namely: 

1. The first activity is Strengthening Institutional and Management Capacity which consists of: a) Capacity Building Related to Organizational/Foundation Governance including Proposal writing and Project Management and Monitoring which aims to strengthen HR in making proposals, reporting, standard operating procedures (SOPs) and monitoring and evaluation (M&E); and b) Organizational Financial Audit by an Independent Auditor which aims to see the extent of our program and budget management to see the shortcomings and obstacles experienced. 

2. Increase knowledge capacity for Staff and Members of the Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender and Intersexual (LBTI) Community which consists of: a) Training on gender equality and inclusivity, analysis. This activity aims to encourage meaningful engagement. Apart from that, it is also to increase public awareness in expanding community members’ understanding of key concepts such as gender equality, inclusivity, and the importance of fighting for the rights of all individuals; b) Public speaking training & effective data presentation training. This activity aims to strengthen the communication and presentation skills of LBT community members so that they are able to become effective advocates in promoting gender equality and inclusivity; and c) Lobbying and advocacy for regional community discrimination regulatory policies to regional governments, which aims to ensure protection and respect for human rights for all members of society, including the right not to discriminate. Additionally, it creates a more equitable and inclusive environment where all individuals have equal opportunities to participate and develop in society.

After your Concept Notes were approved, you had to implement your sub-grant projects.
Could you tell us about your sub-grant implementation?

Leslie (the Philippines): LOVE is now implementing small projects and we are very thankful to our lead organization partner, Babaylanes Inc., and APCOM. We started the project by conducting training on Social Media Development, which was successfully attended by twenty-five (25) members and leaders of our organization. As a result, our social media pages have improved. I am also happy to share that our organization now has an Operations Manual. Currently, we are on our 3rd to 4th activity, which involves lobbying for local ordinances in two barangays in Quezon City. Overall, the sub-grant/small grant initiative is progressing smoothly, thanks to the continuous support our organization receives.

Cheetah (Cambodia): We’re at our final stage of getting our Concept Note (CN) approved and we haven’t implemented it yet.

Gaby (Indonesia): During the running of the project, several things that have been carried out including, institutional legality, lobbying and advocacy related to regional policies and budgets and capacity building for members regarding public speaking and SOGIESC as well as gender inclusivity. Apart from that, we are also involved in policy advocacy related to local discrimination regulations and provide assistance to members in obtaining identity cards.

Dada (Laos): Violence against women and LGBT groups is still visible in the Lao PDR. These people don’t have the opportunity to ask for help. They don’t know where to ask for help, especially the groups that live in remote areas that still believe in men, where women cannot participate in activities like men, do not receive education and still have children prematurely, which affects the lives of women. Living day to day fighting poverty and having to live to support children and husbands, they live like this until the last day of their lives or until they die. As for the LGBT group, which is an ethnic group, it’s even more difficult because they don’t have a chance to realize who they are. Because of the words of faith and customs that hinder their prosperity and development and lack of opportunities to access knowledge due to lack of understanding. To achieve this, we plan to use innovative methods like community theater, establish village volunteer, establish women self-support group, because we want to engage the community actively in our activities so they can help raise awareness and understanding of gender diversity among ethnic groups and with government partners and civil society organization (CSO) partners also.

Thissadee (Thailand): During our sub-grant implementation, it occurred to us that what we needed to create were safe spaces for LBTQ friends in various communities. This is why we had a workshop with LBTQ participants and as well as our feminist friends. We also realized that we have been working hard on challenging issues, such as female friends working on democracy, war, healing, health and well-being, with younger groups in the community, working on gender and violence, but without budget support. So, it is important for our organization to be registered and the project has helped us to prepare for this. We have long-term struggles with gender-based thinking that affects our lives, prejudice, stigma, and threats from all sides, while our strength is running out, what I really want to know is how do we care for and support each other? 

How did being part of this GAC-funded project help you reach your goals as an organization?
What are your dreams and aspirations for the future?

Thissadee (Thailand): What we need is to see these issues and if you are someone who has the opportunity to make a decision to support, please remember that strong activists and strong communities cannot be built in a day. And if you hope to change the structure, the root causes of the problems, stop oppression, injustice, and advocate for equality. 

Please invest in the long term and watch us grow.

Dada (Laos): One of our core values is social inclusion. We believe that the participation of young women, children, the elderly, people with disabilities, LGBT groups and others can help develop the lives of everybody, understand all dimensions and allow everyone to move forward together without leaving anyone behind. Therefore, receiving funding from GAC is considered the most valuable thing that will allow us to achieve important goals and together end the use of violence against all genders at all ages, in order to achieve the goal of our organization’s five-year strategic plan to create equality between all genders. As well as creating a good future for disadvantaged groups living in remote areas in Lao PDR, we have a dream that in the next five (5) years, we will be able to see various organizations in our own country that are involved in the work of LGBTQI groups in working more.

Gaby (Indonesia): The impact of the GAC project on our organization includes: a) formal legal recognition of Srikandi Pakuan, enhancing its credibility and ability to advocate effectively; b) improved advocacy capacity, enabling meaningful challenges to discriminatory regulations; and c) strengthened member skills through training in public speaking, data presentation, and gender equality. In the future, we hope to create policies at the regional level that eliminate discrimination against LGBTQI individuals, sustain innovative programs that foster safe and inclusive community environments, and establish long-term initiatives, such as nursing homes for elderly transgender individuals.

Cheetah (Cambodia): I’ll start with our dreams: We dream of a society where everyone is treated equally with respect and acceptance, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and sex characteristics. We dream to connect and engage with other organizations working to empower the LGBTQI community, both in Cambodia and beyond. We also aim to equip our team with the skills they need to make a lasting impact. These are the dreams that we have and being part of a GAC-funded project helped us to achieve those dreams such as: a) receiving opportunities to expand our recognition beyond Cambodia. Opportunities like attending regional and international events like this AWID Forum, ADB Learning Week in Manila, APCOM Community Summit in Bangkok, and many other events that allow our team members to be exposed to new learning experiences and hear many diverse inspirational stories in their advocacy journeys. That’s what we have been dreaming and we are so grateful for that; b)  opportunity to build a stronger team that can be equipped with a strong organizational structure, working system, and skill sets; and c) with these opportunities and support, we can make a bigger impact on the LGBTQI+ community. On behalf of the LID team, I would like to thank APCOM and GAC for your ongoing support because as a grassroots youth-led team your support makes it possible for us to create positive impacts beyond our limitations beyond our group size. And we hope to continue working with you to make a sustainable impact on the community.

Leslie (the Philippines): Our organization does not have the funds to sustain our projects. Most of our members are volunteers and unable to finish their education due to poverty and lack of technical skills. However, through the sub-grant/small grant from GAC through APCOM, we have been able to continue our organization’s work. Our dream for LOVE is to remain active in underserved communities. While there are still no laws to protect our sector, we aim to serve as a refuge and safe space for LBTQ individuals who are abused and discriminated. I can confidently say that what we are doing now is effective. Not only are we implementing our projects successfully, but we are also gradually achieving our goals. Currently, we have established the TIBOQC Federation in Quezon City in partnership with GALANG Philippines and QC local government unit, a network of LBTQ individuals in Quezon City. In the coming years, we hope to form a larger federation across the Philippines, where LBTQ individuals are visible and collectively fighting for their rights.

About the panelists: 

Cheetah (Cambodia)

My name is Socheata. I’m from LoveIsDiveristy in Cambodia. We are a group of LGBTQI youth volunteers created in 2018. Our work focuses on empowering LGBTQI individuals through online campaigns, documentaries, training on skill sets and knowledge on human rights and legal protection, workshops, events, and community building initiatives. Our goal is to create a safe and supportive space, raise awareness, challenge stereotypes, and advocate for the rights and needs of the LGBTQI community in Cambodia.

Dada (Loos)

My name is Phailinh Keutla or Dada, and I work for the Takienglao Association in Lao PDR. I focus on promoting equality, equity, and diversity within society, particularly for disadvantaged and ethnic groups. The area where I conduct activities also faces significant gender inequality, an issue deeply rooted in local beliefs. Furthermore, addressing gender diversity within these ethnic communities presents unique challenges. The concept of gender diversity often clashes with deeply held cultural values, making it difficult for individuals to openly identify as gender diverse with their own communities.

Our organization is a nonprofit organization that has experience working with communities in remote areas as well as more than ten (10) years of experience in promoting community access to health services and reducing malnutrition among children under five (5) years of age, participating in reducing the differences between the status of ethnic groups, especially women, children and LGBT groups affected by health in remote areas, especially in Saravan/Salavan province. They struggle with modern challenges, including violence against women and human rights issues. These groups often face disadvantages, particularly in education and access to health services.

Leslie (the Philippines)

I am Leslie E. Ampo-an. I am the President of LBTQ Organization Against Violence and for Equality or LOVE, an LBTQ-led organization from the urban poor. I am a former local community organizer of GALANG Philippines. I am also a Convenor & President of District V, Quezon City, of TIBOQC Federation, a federation of lesbian, bisexual, queer women and trans men in Quezon City. I am a passionate advocate for the rights and empowerment of lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LBTQ) individuals. With a focus on capacity development, visibility, and socio-economic inclusion, I tirelessly work to create equitable opportunities and amplify the voices of marginalized groups through LOVE.

Gaby (Indonesia)

My name is Gaby Septiani and I was born in Bogor City on September 16 1969, the first of four children.  I am a trans woman who has a high fighting spirit and is independent. For me, being a trans woman is not an obstacle in achieving my dreams and life goals.  Perseverance and fighting spirit within me are the main keys in navigating the journey of life. And I always feel proud to be a trans woman who can always provide benefits to other trans woman friends.

The Srikandi Pakuan Foundation is an organizational institution led by transgender people which was founded on May 21, 2010 in Bogor City. Srikandi Pakuan was then confirmed and legalized by the Ministry of Law and Human Rights to become Srikandi Pakuan Panggah on April 16, 2024, based on the background of the emergence of various problems faced by vulnerable communities, especially trans women groups in the Greater Bogor area, namely health, economic, social, educational and other problems.  Srikandi Pakuan Panggah’s vision is to create a community environment that is more conducive to vulnerable groups. Panggah is a Sundanese word that signifies strength. 

Thissadee (Thailand)

I am Thissadee Sawangying, the Director/Founder of Health and Opportunity Network (HON) in Thailand. I work in care and support programs, harm reduction programs and lesbian, bisexual, and transgender men’s (LBT) wellbeing promotion. For care and support programs, I promote health rights and develop service systems for the quality of life of people living with HIV. Since 2020 up to present, I have worked with AIDS HealthCare Foundation. For harm reduction programs, I focus on women and gender-diverse people and the intersection with HIV, substance use, and related harm reduction services. I work to strengthen drug user communities. 

I have been working on harm reduction programs from 2021 to 2026 supported by Voice, International Drug Policy Consortium and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. For LBT wellbeing promotion, I strengthen LBT communities, develop health service systems and take part in public awareness and communication of LBT people’s health and rights. I work on projects supported by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and Thai Health Promotion Foundation. I also have experience working on the Subcommittee on Health Security for the National Health Security Office, Region 6, Rayong in Thailand as well as an expert committee member in the occupational protection committee. I have worked with the Department of Women’s Affairs and Family Development under the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security.

Supported by:

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Reflection Piece of the AWID Conference from our Partners

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