23 portant for monitoring bodies to understand that the designation “LGBTI” can have different meanings to different people – relating for instance to identification and identities, attractions, practices, or a combination of various meanings – and that what ultimately matters is how an individual self-identifies. Additionally, certain individuals who are not LGBTI but may be perceived as such are exposed to the same risks of discrimination and abuse. Notwithstanding the significant differences encompassed by the acronym “LGBTI” (mixing concepts of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, as well as sex characteristics), LGBTI persons tend to be exposed to the same array of risks when deprived of their liberty and are “disproportionately subjected to torture and other forms of ill-treatment, because they fail to conform to socially constructed gender expectations.9” The Yogyakarta Principles—although not explicitly using the acronym LGBTI—also group together various identities and experiences, while acknowledging “the often distinct violations affecting persons on grounds of ‘gender expression’ and ‘sex characteristics’10”. Monitoring bodies should also take into consideration how sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, and sex characteristics intersect with other characteristics and vulnerability factors, such as age, the existence of a disability, race, ethnic origin, religious background, or economic status. In some contexts, for instance, there is evidence that LGBTI people from ethnic minorities experience higher levels of policing and are overrepresented in penal establishments. They may also be discriminated against during court proceedings and face additional challenges in accessing a lawyer and obtaining pre-trial release. Monitoring bodies should therefore have a dynamic and evolving understanding of the concept of vulnerability in order to adequately comprehend situations of multiple vulnerabilities and decipher how specific characteristics intersect with one another. Report of the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment to the UN General Assembly, A/56/156, 3 July 2001, para.19. Additional Principles and State Obligations on the Application of International Human Rights Law in relation to Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, Gender Expression and Sex Characteristics to complement the Yogyakarta Principles, as adopted on 10 November 2017, Geneva. The revision of the Principles in 2017 led to the inclusion of the concepts of “gender expression” and “sex characteristics” in their title. 9 10 Chapter I A Monitoring Guide