Welcome to the website of the European Parliament's Intergroup on Gay and Lesbian Rights grouping Members of European Parliament and their support staff working on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) equal rights issues.
European Commission signs trade deal with countries jailing and killing homosexuals
Negotiations came to a close last Friday over the revised Cotonou Agreement, which delineates political and trade relations between the European Union and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states. Out of 79 ACP states, 49 criminalise homosexuality with up to 14 years in jail, and up to 5 punish lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people with death.
European Commissioner Andris Piebalgs previously intended to include non-discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation in the new terms (as demanded by the European Parliament), but finally agreed to conclude a deal with ACP states that does not mention the human rights of LGBT people, despite blatant increases in state-supported violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the ACP region.
Michael Cashman MEP, Co-president of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on LGBT Rights, reacted: “This is unacceptable for the European Parliament. The Commission backed down in the face of governments that increasingly discriminate, imprison, torture and kill people because of their sexual orientation. It is a dangerous signal that there is a hierarchy of rights: some will be defended, but others will not. This matter will not be left to rest here.”
Ulrike Lunacek MEP, Co-president of the Intergroup on LGBT Rights, concurred: “I would have expected Commissioner Piebalgs not to give in to pressure from ACP governments. His abdication is not only against European values, it also is harmful to LGBT people in ACP countries who are confronted with the notion of homosexuality being ‘un-African’—a notion proven wrong by historians and sociologists. The European Parliament will confront the Commission with this decision.”
The revised agreement has been tentatively agreed upon, with the official signature planned for June 2010 in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
Public Letter to the Lithuanian Parliament: Don't ban Baltic Pride!
Sent to:
Irena Degutienė, Speaker of the Seimas
Petras Gražulis, Member of the Seimas
Carbon copy:
Dalia Grybauskaitė, President of the Republic of Lithuania
Živilė Pavilonytė, Permanent Representative of the Seimas to the European Union
Mrs Speaker, Hon. Mr Gražulis,
We write to you not in defiance or anger, but in sadness following the decision by Mr Gražulis to attempt to cancel the planned Baltic Pride event, due to take place in Vilnius on the 8th May 2010.
We are aware that, during the debates surrounding the drafting of a new Law on the Protection of Minors from the Detrimental Effects of Information, several Members of the Seimas expressed their opposition to the idea that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Lithuanian citizens may parade on the streets in what is now across the world a 40-year old tradition of pride marches (the first of which took place in 1969).
Pride marches symbolise a day of peaceful celebration and engagement with other citizens—not separately from society, but as a full and equal part of it.
However, it has been asserted by some that the event may “insult people of the Catholic faith”. This statement fails to take into account the many Catholic believers who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. Indeed, we fear that this debate is overlooking a key factor: Lithuanians have always included, include, and will always include people of all sexual orientations and gender identities, who deserve equal rights.
Finally, we would like to kindly remind you that a pride march is not an attack on the State, nor on traditional values. Pride marches are a joyful and peaceful celebration of diversity. It is a strong statement by an entire community that wants to live without fear, openly, together, and as equal citizens.
On behalf of the European Parliament's Intergroup on LGBT Rights,
Yours sincerely,
Ulrike Lunacek MEP, Co-president
Michael Cashman MEP, Co-president
International Women’s Day event: Lunacek enquires about protection of lesbian women’s rights
Today the European Parliament hosted a high-level conference celebrating International Women's Day 2010. The event investigated EU action in the field of violence against women inside the European Union and in the EU’s external relations.
Ulrike Lunacek MEP, Co-president of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on LGBT Rights, intervened in the discussion with Viviane Reding, Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship.
Ms Lunacek enquired about the protection from violence against lesbian women in the strategy of the European Union after the Commission’s new Women's Charter. Commissioner Reding replied that the Charter of Fundamental Rights clearly states that women have a right to live without fear, and violence against women is a crime. “A woman is a woman and needs to be respected, no matter how she lives”, Commissioner Reding stated.
Ulrike Lunacek MEP commented: “I take Viviane Reding’s answer as a promise that violence against lesbian women is also part of the strategy of the European Commission, and I will certainly follow up on this commitment!”
Lithuanian Parliamentarians try to overturn permit for international LGBT Pride in Vilnius
Only two weeks after the enactment of a controversial Law on the Protection of Minors in Lithuania, Members of the Parliament seek to ban an international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender pride event due to take place in Vilnius on the 8th May 2010.
Municipal authorities authorised the three-nation Baltic Pride event last month. But a petition led by Petras Gražulis, member of the Order and Justice party, calls on the national Prosecution Office to reconsider the permit in the light of a new law banning minors from accessing information about “non-traditional” forms of family. Gražulis claims to have gathered over 50 signatures from Members of Parliament.
The Lithuanian judiciary has yet to take account of the new law. Human rights organisations in Lithuania and the European Union have expressed serious concerns regarding the law, which could obstruct the freedom of expression and assembly for groups supporting the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
Leonidas Donskis, Member of the European Parliament for Lithuania, commented: “Until now, the Order and Justice party was regarded as a marginal and anti-European political force. The petition led by Petras Gražulis says it all about how ‘deeply embedded’ European values of tolerance and respect for diversity are for him and his party. The time has come for more responsible and civilised political groups in Lithuania to react. Do they want to close ranks with Mr. Gražulis and his party? Do they wish to continue the struggle against the values founding the EU? The answer is theirs.”
Michael Cashman MEP, Co-president of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on LGBT Rights, further added: “I trust in the judiciary to throw out this shameful attack on fundamental rights. These people do not represent the decent citizens of Lithuania.”
Following its September 2009 resolution expressing concern over the law, the European Parliament will keep monitoring the fundamental rights of sexual and gender minorities in Lithuania. The European Commission will also closely scrutinise the implications of the new law.
The European Court of Human Rights keeps Poland in line with LGBT rights
The European Parliament’s Intergroup on LGBT Rights welcomed a recent decision by the European Court of Human Rights. The court in Strasbourg ruled that Poland was wrong to deny de facto same-sex couples the rights afforded to their heterosexual counterparts.
Michael Cashman MEP, Co-president of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on LGBT Rights, commented: “This is a reminder that all Member States are signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights, and that they must abide by their obligations. The human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are of equal importance, and should be fully respected.”
Ulrike Lunacek MEP, Co-president of the Intergroup on LGBT Rights, continued: “Polish authorities and courts should have learnt a lesson with Karner v. Austria in 2003, when the same Court found Austria breached the European Convention of Human Rights through its lack of recognition of same-sex couples in application of tenancy laws. I hope Polish authorities will hear the message of the Court and abide by the European Convention of Human Rights.”
All European Union Member States are signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights. The European Court of Human Rights has yet to conclusively examine several cases related to LGBT people’s human rights submitted in the last few years.
