■ Deborah Lambillotte and Riccardo Gottardi, co-chairs of ILGA-Europe's Executive Board, open the conference today. photo courtesy ILGA-Europe

VILNIUS, October 25, 2007  –  Senior officials of the International Lesbian and Gay Association Europe today slammed both the Vilnius city authorities and a local court for banning a public “rainbow flag” event in the city during the association’s annul conference, calling the situation “outrageous”.

Deborah Lambillotte and Riccardo Gottardi, co-chairs of ILGA-Europe’s Executive Board told conference delegates this morning at the opening session that the decision “is in breach of the European Convention of Human Rights”.

“The local authorities have forbidden a public event, not a march, just a simple rainbow flag event, that Lithuanian Gay League was organizing during our conference,” they told the conference in a joint opening speech.

“In Poland, last year, they experienced the very same situation,” they pointed out.  “Polish organisations went to courts and all the way up to the European Court of Human Rights, that ruled that their human rights had been violated and that public authorities should not have forbidden their events.

“Lithuanian Gay League also went to court in Lithuania and yesterday was [told] by the court that still they cannot have the rainbow flag event.

“Given the ruling by the European Court of Human Rights, this is just outrageous and LGL has appealed against this court decision and has all of our support.”

They said that the law in many countries has continued to be broken.

“Freedom of assembly and freedom of speech have been attacked throughout our continent.  Even though the these rights are at the basis of the European Convention of Human Rights, member states of the Council of Europe have repeatedly ignored them.

“Pride marches have been forbidden, again this year again.  Pride marches have been attacked – in Budapest, in Zagreb, here in the Baltics, in Moscow – and the governments have not been capable or willing to guarantee the safety of the marchers.”

Ms. Lambillotte and Mr. Gottardi pointed out that in the coming year ILGA-Europe will have to work more closely with The Council of Europe to make full use of what is already in place and to strongly push for the member states of the Council of Europe to live up to their human rights commitments.

“But we have now also two new human rights instruments to use,” they continued.

“The first one is the Yogyakarta principles [principles that have been put together by a very high level international panel of experts in international human rights law and sexual orientation and gender identity].

“These provide us with strong arguments for lobbying and advocacy on a wide range of issues from freedom of expression to family.

“The second one is our newly achieved consultative status at the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.  We are very proud that, together with several other organisations, we are now able to make our voices heard, once again and in our own name, at the United Nations.

“Such work will also open us new opportunities to promote human rights for LGBT people in Europe and to support the worldwide struggle for equality.”

Turning to the European Union, they said that there is some positive news coming from Brussels.

“There is a proposal, eventually, for a new antidiscrimination directive to go beyond employment and that would cover all grounds of discriminations.

“Later on at this conference, this proposal will be presented to you by Belinda Pike, Director of Equality in DG Employment.  This is a very important step.

“Today, in EU law, there is hierarchy of rights – some grounds of discrimination have more protections, while others have less.

“We have always considered that a single comprehensive anti-discrimination directive, covering grounds of age, disability, religion and belief, race or ethnic origin, gender, as well as sexual orientation would be a more effective way of addressing multiple discrimination and ensuring that all grounds of discrimination are treated equally.

“We have found much opposition by our adversaries and sometimes also from our allies,” they said.

The third institution that ILGA-Europe continues to work with the OSCE.

“The OSCE will offer us a number of opportunities, in particular to address hate crimes and hate speeches.  We have to use to both the EU and the OSCE mechanisms to fight against hate crimes and hate speeches.

“No country in fact is free from them.  On the contrary, in this past year there has been a significant increase of violence and attacks, both verbal and physical, throughout Europe against LGBT people.

“Even countries and cities that are considered to be friendly – and a good and safe place to live – towards LGBT people have been the scene for such violent crimes.

“This reminds us not to fall victims of complacency – we should never think that we have achieved everything and that we can settled down and our rights are guaranteed.

“It is not only in some parts of Europe that LGBT people face discrimination and violence – it can effect every one of us, no matter where we live.”

Ms. Lambillotte and Mr. Gottardi then turned to religion, and its “right wing”.

“Many of us are concerned about the growing influence and the growing numbers of the religious right in Europe.  We should be very mindful of that and we should support our brothers and sisters that suffer because they are members of a church or of a religion that does not recognise equal dignity to their identities.

“But the integralist religious movements as well as the extreme right and neo-fascist movement are only the collector of a widespread social distress.

“Such distress has it roots in the economic difficulties that are present in many countries and in many social classes.  Furthermore our political leaders have been failing in giving a sense of perspective and an inspiring idea of the future.

“As a result, there is a wave of right wing extremism that is running through Europe, some of this uses instrumentally religious arguments, much of it, is just plain neo-fascism.

“It is clear that European governments are today less capable of dealing with the extreme right. We remember very well when, just a few years ago, Jeorg Haider won the elections in Austria and the strong reaction by the governments of the European Unions.

“Just a few years afterwards, a much worst government took power in Poland and there was no reaction – there was a thunderous silence.

“Luckily for Poland and for all of Europe, we are today free from at least one of the Kazsjnski brothers.

“But where were the European institutions in all of this,” they asked?

“Where were the Governments of Europe?

“There was – and there still is – a lack of courage in our leaders.  Too many keep forgetting that the social and human rights dimension is a crucial part of economic development, too many keep forgetting that there are real lives of people beyond the numbers of the economy.

“Too many do not stand up for the values of Europe.  And this makes those that do stand up all the more important.  For example the Swedish, Dutch and Danish governments and the Nordic Council  have provided much significant support for this conference.”

For the full joint speech by Deborah Lambillotte and Riccardo Gottardi, click HERE

LINK

website

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence.  

Posted: 25 October 2007 at 14:30 (UK time)