Letter to Commissioner Spidla

Dear Commissioner Spidla,
On behalf of ILGA-Europe and the LGBT Intergroup of the European Parliament, we are writing to you to express our grave concerns regarding the new draft version of the Law for the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information currently before the Lithuanian Parliament, and to call upon the European Commission to take all appropriate measures to ensure compliance with European and international human rights instruments.
On 2 June 2009, the Lithuanian Parliament (Seimas) voted on amendments to the existing Law on the Protection of Minors against Detrimental Effects of Public Information which would in effect ban the “propagation of homosexuality” to children. The law currently covers issues such as the portrayal of physical or psychological violence or vandalism; the display of a dead or cruelly mutilated body of a person and information that arouses fear or horror, encourages self-mutilation or suicide. The proposed amendment would put information about homosexuality on par with these issues. It asserts that ‘a detrimental effect on the development of minors’ is caused by ‘public information that agitates for homosexual relations’ and that ‘defies family values’.  The authors of the proposed amendment have written in an explanatory note that “the propagation of a non-traditional sexual orientation and exposure to information containing positive coverage of homosexual relations may therefore cause negative consequences for the physical, mental and, first and foremost, moral development of minors.” The final vote on the draft law is expected to take place at a plenary sitting of the Seimas before the end of the parliamentary session in July.
We are very concerned that this amendment will lead to the banning of any information related to homosexuality and bisexuality, such as websites, exhibitions, demonstrations and other public events related to LGBT issues if these could be accessed by minors.
We consider that this proposed legislation would lead to a clear violation to Lithuania’s obligations under the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child. The legislative proposal is similar to the UK’s section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988, which the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended be repealed and which was removed in 2003. Lithuania has a legal obligation to act “in the best interests of the child” (Convention on the Rights of the Child, Article 3), which includes respecting the child’s right to be free from discrimination, including that based on sexual orientation or gender identity, as well as obligations regarding freedom of expression under Article 13 of the Convention.
This legislative change would also lead to a violation of the right to freedom of speech and access to information and the principle of non-discrimination, which are fundamental rights enshrined in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention of Human Rights.
In this context, we would like to urge the European Commission, as guardian of the treaty, to remind the Government of Lithuania of its obligations as a Member of the European Union, and to take all necessary measures to ensure that the government complies with European legislation.
We look forward to receiving information about actions taken by the European Commission to ensure that the Government of Lithuania fulfils its obligations.
Dirk De Meirleir                                                                                                             Michael Cashman
Executive Director, ILGA-Europe                                                                                  President of LGBT Intergroup