A coalition of human rights organizations has issued a joint statement urging the United Nations to renew its human rights expert mandate on sexual orientation and gender identity. The UN’s Independent Expert on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity was established in 2016 with by a narrow vote of member states, and was renewed narrowly in 2019. It is the only part of the UN that directly addresses issues pertaining to sexual orientation and gender identity. Its existence is currently up for re-evaluation and supporters of LGBTQ rights are asking for the IE SOGI to stay. The IE SOGI acts as an independent party, separate from the United Nations, and “examines, monitors, advises, and publicly reports” on member countries that commit human rights abuses based on sexual orientation and gender identity.