On March 26th, 2015, the conference organized by the Lithuanian Human Rights Centre, “Expression of Opinion on the Internet: Human Rights, Ethics, and Legal Practice,” took place at the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Lithuania. Attorneys, public prosecutors, journalists, scholars, and representatives from state and non-governmental institutions read reports and participated in discussions.

Tokyo ward becomes first in Japan to recognize gay partnerships

Shibuya will issue certificates recognizing gay unions as ‘equal to marriage’. Shibuya ward in Tokyo has become the first locale in Japan to recognize gay couples, a major step forward for LGBTI rights in the conservative country. The district assembly Tuesday (31 March) voted overwhelmingly in favor of issuing certificates recognizing same-sex unions as ‘equivalent to

LGL Celebrates International Transgender Day of Visibility

The Transgender Day of Visibility (TDoV) is an annual holiday held on March 31st, dedicated to showing support and raising awareness of discrimination faced by transgender people around the world. The day aims to shining light upon the accomplishments of transgender people while fighting transphobia by spreading knowledge of the trans* community. Unlike Transgender Day of

LGL Travels to Iceland to Learn More about TRANS* Inclusion

On March 19th-22nd, 2015 two representatives of the national LGBT* rights organization LGL visited the partner organization Q – Queer Student Association in Reykjavik, Iceland. The main purpose of this 4-day visit was to acquire additional skills and competences in advocating for human rights of transgender individuals and to draw upon the best Icelandic practices

The Catholic Church in Lithuania is against a group of lawmakers’ proposal to legalize same-sex partnerships in Lithuania, claiming that such a move would “degrade the family concept”, a representative of the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference says. “The law some Seimas members want to legalize would make the moral nature of family relations insignificant for the

Council of Europe prepares Transgender Resolution

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe will debate and vote on a resolution on the discrimination of transgender persons in Europe in its spring session (April 20-24, 2015). A related report has been adopted by the Equality and Non-Discrimination Committee on March 20. The Committee denounces human rights violations trans people are exposed

Sweden adds gender-neutral pronoun to dictionary

Pronoun ‘hen’ can be used without revealing gender – either because it is unknown, because the person is transgender, or the information is superfluous. The official dictionary of the Swedish language will introduce a gender-neutral pronoun in April, editors at the Swedish Academy have announced. “Hen” will be added to “han” (he) and “hon” (she)

Lithuanian President: “Wider discussion needed on same-sex partnerships”

The Lithuanian society needs a “wider discussion” on the legalization of same-sex partnerships, says the President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė. “We need a wider discussion on these issues in our society. EU members’ practice of legalizing partnerships varies. Lithuania has not even properly regulated partnerships between men and women,” the president told

Bid to block spousal benefits for homosexual U.N. employees fails

A U.N. budget committee overwhelmingly rejected a Russia-sponsored resolution that sought to overturn Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s decision to extend spousal benefits to homosexual U.N. personnel who are legally married on the 24th of March, 2015. Members of the U.N. General Assembly’s Fifth Committee voted against the resolution by an 80-43 vote margin. Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh,

Lithuania’s Prime Minister is against legalization of same-sex partnerships

Lithuania’s Social Democratic Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius declared that he is against a proposal by a group of lawmakers to legalize same-sex partnerships in the Lithuania on the 25th of March, 2015. “No. I have my opinion which I have expressed on numerous occasions. Thank you,” claimed the Prime Minister of Lithuania when asked if