November 2018
November 2018: #Giving4Equality, TDoR, Moscow Mechanism against Russia, new opinion of the Ombudsman in Latvia, and much more...
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No. 278. November 2018. In this issue... ILGA-Europe
Chechnya Diversity Equality and non-discrimination Family
Freedom of Assembly
Hate crime
Hate speech
Health Notice board |
ILGA-Europe |
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Stand with the European LGBTI movement. Donations made to ILGA-Europe THIS WEEK ONLY will be matched by generous donors, up to €4000. Every bit helps, so chip in before the end of Sunday 2 December to double your impact. |
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Joint statement: ‘Democracy under attack’Fourteen civil society organisations and trade unions -including ILGA-Europe- have written a joint statement to the European Union and European governments to respond to the threat to our democracies in Europe. The representatives of the signatories handed over the statement to the First Vice-President Frans Timmermans on 26 November in Brussels.
Read the statement in full. |
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Workshop: “Responding to the anti-gender movement”
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Training on campaigning and message framing in Bosnia and Herzegovina15 activists from Sarajevo Open Centre participated to a 2-day workshop on campaigning and message framing facilitated by ILGA-Europe Senior Campaign and Programmes officer Laura Piazza, which took place in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 19 to 21 November. Participants worked on building campaign strategies and experimenting new narratives around two main upcoming campaigns: same-sex partnerships and first Pride of Sarajevo.
Learn more about our work on strategic communications. Visit the online resource centre on strategic communications.
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Chechnya |
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Moscow Mechanism initiated against RussiaOn 1 November, 16 OSCE member states initiated the Moscow Mechanism against Russia. This is a process that will launch an independent fact-finding mission into reported human rights abuses in Chechnya. This includes – but is not limited to – the illegal detention, abuse and extra-judicial killing of perceived LGBTI people in the Chechen Republic.
Read the reaction of our members, the Russian LGBTI Network.
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Diversity |
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Roma LGBTQI art: BaxtArte // Queer × Roma / Art x Activism //Different forms of artistic expression have an outstanding role in self-portraying life situations, feelings, internal and external battles around the Roma LGBTQI communities. QRTV Europa and Romani Cultural and Arts Company, presented at the ILGA-Europe Annual Conference in Brussels an overview of the artworks, activists and events of Roma LGBTQI people who are trying to awake and empower themselves in a complex, marginalising and sometimes firmly humiliating oppression. The gallery was implemented by Laszlo Farkas aka Gypsyrobot, Hungarian DJ, visual artist, activist and initiator of QRTV Europa.
Read more about BaxtArte. Read more about intersectionality at the ILGA-Europe Annual Conference. |
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Human rights do not diminish with ageOn 1 October International Day of Older Persons, AGE Platform Europe launched a 70-day campaign culminating on the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights against ageism to illustrate the harmful effects of ageism and how it impacts people across the life course. Between 5 and 11 November, ILGA-Europe joined #AgeingEqual campaign and revealed the reality about ageing and sexuality for LGBTI people.
Check out our #SilverRainbow campaign from 2015. Have a look at our resource webpage on age and LGBTI.
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Equality and non-discrimination |
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Swiss Senate votes to improve protection on grounds of sexual orientation but not gender identityOn 28 November, the Senate of Switzerland voted to criminalise hate speech and discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation, but refused to do the same for grounds of gender identity. ILGA-Europe welcomes the extension of protections against hate speech and discrimination based on sexual orientation – this is an important step forward for lesbian, gay and bisexual citizens of Switzerland. However, the decision of the Senate to explicitly exclude grounds of gender identity constitutes a denial of this protection for trans people, and sends the message that hate speech and discrimination against them is acceptable.
Read more. Switzerland is on the 22nd place out of 49 countries on the Rainbow Map with 38 points.
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Family |
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The Ombudsman in Latvia issued a historic opinion about same-sex familiesThe Office of the Ombudsman of the Republic of Latvia issued a historic opinion on 29 October highlighting that marriage cannot be seen as the only basis for the formation of a family and calling the Ministry of Justice and the Saeima (parliament) of the Republic of Latvia to fulfil their obligation in accordance with international law, and introduce a framework for the recognition and protection of same-sex families. The Saeima has rejected proposals for partnership legislation twice before.
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“Will Latvia fall out of being in last place?”Kaspars Zalitis is the board member of Association of LGBT and their friends MOZAIKA and former Co-Chair of Baltic Pride 2018 and EuroPride 2015 and wrote a blog post for ILGA-Europe Blog about the opinion issued by the Ombudsman in Latvia. In his blog, Zalitis describes it as ‘a game-changer’ for the country: “The year 2018 has brought a significant change in Latvia showing that often after great stagnation, progress can happen fast.”
Read Kaspars’s blog. |
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Civil union law passed in San MarinoThe general assembly of San Marino decided on 15 November that civil unions can be formed between same and different sex couples. Presented first on 18 December 2017, the law text was approved by 40 votes in favor, 4 against, and 4 abstentions. During the discussions at the assembly, MP Davide Forcellini proposed also including sexual orientation among the prohibited grounds of discrimination in the Constitution.
Read more in Italian. See San Marino’s country page on Rainbow Europe. |
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Freedom of Assembly |
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6th Pride March in MontenegroMontenegro celebrated its 6th Pride march on 17 November in the capital city of Podgorica. Almost 400 people, predominantly from among the local community, came out to march in support of the human rights of LGBTI people – a significant number for a country with a population of only 600,000. Police presence was less visible than in previous years, far more people marched openly, and no incidents were recorded.
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ECHR rules that Russia violated rights of LGBT people in holding peaceful assembliesThe European Court of Human Rights found Russia to have violated rights of LGBT people in holding peaceful assemblies with the rule on 27 November. The Alekseyev and Others v Russia group of cases concerned the continued refusal by Russian authorities to approve requests to hold LGBT rallies in various Russian regions between 2009 and 2014. The Court found violation of Article 11 (freedom of assembly), together with Article 13 (right to effective remedy) and Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the European Convention.
Read more about the judgment. See Russia on our online Rainbow Europe module. |
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Hate crime |
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Armenia’s government must protect their LGBTI citizensOn 6 November, the organisers of the annual Eastern European and Central Asia Forum Conference of LGBTI+ Christians were forced to cancel the 2018 event, scheduled to take place in Yerevan on 14-18 November. This decision was forced upon the organisers after a series of death threats, vandalism and homophobic acts directed at (perceived) LGBTI people in Armenia. “ILGA-Europe are demanding a swift response from national authorities in Armenia – they must investigate these attacks, hold the perpetrators accountable and defend their LGBTI citizens.” said ILGA-Europe Executive Director Evelyne Paradis. “Attacks of this nature cannot be dismissed or ignored.”
Read the media release in full. |
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TDoR2018: 16 murders of trans and gender-diverse people in Europe last 12 monthsOn the occasion of the International Trans Day of Remembrance (TDoR), the Transrespect versus Transphobia Worldwide (TvT) team revealed the report showing the number of cases of reported killings of trans and gender-diverse people between 1 October 2017 and 30 September 2018. According to this report, in the last 12 months, 16 trans and gender-diverse people were murdered in Europe.
Read more from the report covering data starting from 2008.
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Hate speech |
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Trans people is now protected by hate speech legislation in SwedenOn 14 November, the Swedish parliament took the second of two necessary decisions to include trans people in the Freedom of Speech act's regulation on hate speech. The first decision came in May of this year. The legislative change comes into effect on 1 January 2019. In two steps, trans people have now been given increased protection in Swedish legislation. Since 1 July, trans people are protected within the hate crime legislation. At the same time “transgender identity and expression” was added as a protected ground for unlawful discrimination and insult.
Read more. Sweden are currently ranked at 10th place on the Rainbow Europe Map. |
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‘Human Rights vs Aggressive Information’ in Lithuania, Belarus and UkraineNational LGBT Rights Organization LGL (Lithuania), Cultural – Educational Institution DOTYK (Belarus), Journalists for Tolerance J4T (Belarus), and NGO FULCRUM UA (Ukraine) conducted a desk research on the topics of aggressive information in Lithuanian, Belarusian and Ukrainian media, the legal framework of each country, and the relation between human Rights activists and media. The research also focuses on the role of the media in eradicating and reinforcing discriminatory perceptions and the forms of aggressive speech that we face today.
Read the report in English.
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Health |
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Nearest testing centre for HIV and hepatitisDid you know this was the European Testing Week? Running from 23-30 November 2018, #EuroTestWeek encourages organisations throughout Europe to unite for one week to promote hepatitis and/or HIV testing and create awareness on the benefits of getting tested.
Find your nearest testing centre with the European Test Finder.
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Notice board |
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How can we make our meetings accessible for all?The European Disability Forum has a guide that will help your organisation to make events and meetings more accessible for persons with disabilities. It includes guidance on the venue, programme, presentations, speakers, and how to interact better with the audience. It also includes links to practical details such as how to find a Sign Language interpreter, where to book accessible taxis, a list with accessible hotel rooms and meeting venues in Brussels, and how to make presentations more accessible. It will not only improve the experience for persons with disabilities but for all participants, making the procedures easier and ensuring better participation in the meetings.
Read the guide here. |
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Human Dignity Trust is hiring – Head of LegalThe Human Dignity Trust are seeking a litigation lawyer to join their team in London as Head of Legal to oversee and implement specialist legal support to HDT’s partner organisations around the world who are using the courts to challenge anti-LGBT criminal laws and related actions. You can apply for the position by 9 December 2018 with a CV and a cover letter.
Read more and apply for the job. |
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European Women’s Lobby’s job vacancy for Communications and Media OfficerThe European Women’s Lobby are looking for a Communications and Media Officer, who will cover for their colleague who will be taking maternity leave for 6 months, from March 2019 onwards. The person will assist EWL policy and outreach work through effective and relevant communication strategies. The ideal candidate must be have the right to work in Belgium and should be able to start preferably early February to do a hand over with the current Communications and Media Officer.
How to apply is here.
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