The Republic of Macedonia, in the process of transition to a democracy, has embraced the values of rule of law, and in particular the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms as inherent part of this standard. Intrinsic elements and notions in this regard, are the concept of non-discrimination and equality, as well. Sexual orientation as a very sensitive issue, closely related to the notion of identity of a human being, has emerged on the agendas of the established democracies, and forms part of the growing body of international norms and jurisprudence. Though there are still some problems and different manners of interpretation, there is a common ground on a number of questions. Thus, Macedonia as member state of the Council of Europe, and a candidate country for accession to the European Union, needs to align its legislation with the prevalent legal concepts, and assume its obligations stemming from its membership in the main human rights watchdog, and in the fulfilment of the Copenhagen criteria in the integration to the EU.

The aim of this analysis is to provide with a summary of basic international law principles, comparative case-law, and to assess Macedonian legislation with reference to those principles, to identify gaps and problematic areas, and to consequently advocate future reforms. MASSO by the means of this overview, would like to give its contribution in the protection of the rights of an exceptionally vulnerable group of people, subjected to prejudice, largely neglected by the society, an "invisible" minority, whose members need to exercise their rights, which as we shall see from the text below, are barely guaranteed by the current laws and subjected to hostile environment and attitude. Namely, MASSO has on numerous occasions pointed out that the diverse group of the LGBT population is united by the following problems: "[e]xistence of direct or indirect discrimination because of their sexual orientation, psychic or verbal violence as a result of their sexual orientation and the proportion of the impact that this orientation has on their overall social, family and active life."

There have been few positive developments, but a lot needs to be done, in order to improve the situation. After building a legal system in conformity with prevalent international human rights standards, the main test shall be the actual and effective implementation of the laws and secondary legislation, as well as fighting stigma and established patterns of behaviour, based on double moral standards.