In a close vote at the United Nations General Assembly on November 21, the newly appointed UN expert to address violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity will be allowed to continue his work. The vote came after 850 NGOs from 156 countries called on UN member states to take a principled stand that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights are human rights. The vote rejected language advanced by African countries that sought to stop the expert from working until the UN could debate the "legal basis" of his mandate.