Lithuanian Court labels a same-sex kiss as “eccentric behavior”

On January 28, 2015 the District Court of Klaipėda City passed an order to dismiss a formal complaint about hateful online comments regarding a same-sex kiss picture by two students, filed by the national LGBT* rights organization LGL. As stated in the court order, a person who posts a same-sex kiss photo in a public

MEPs condemn homophobic hate speech Lithuanian MP

Last Sunday, Member of the Lithuanian Parliament Algirdas Vaclovas Patackas warned that the head of the Lithuanian Gay League’s (LGL) engaged in “provocation” that might result in “dead bodies”, similar to recent attacks in Paris. The MP made the remarks after LGL’s head, Vladimir Simonko, suggested that the organisation should consider buying the now obsolete

Human Rights commissioner reminds President of Latvia about LGBT* rights

Nils Muižnieks, the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, has criticized recent comments in a newspaper interview about homosexuality and society by Latvian President Andris Bērziņš, the LETA newswire reported on January 12, 2014. “Latvia, along with other Council of Europe Member States, is bound by the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees

Olympic Charter adds protection for LGB athletes

On December 8, 2014 the International Olympic Committee unanimously voted through an amendment which formally protect lesbian, gay and bisexual people from discrimination. The Olympic Charter has been amended to explicitly safeguard lesbian, gay and bisexual athletes, after concerns about homophobia at this year’s Winter Olympics in Sochi. The charter already outlawed discrimination on the

On November 25, 2014 the Lithuanian Parliament Seimas rejected yet another candidate for the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson. In a secret ballot, 48 MPs voted in favor of appointing lawyer Diana Gumbrevičiūtė-Kuzminskienė to the position, 42 were against and 18 abstained. MP Dalia Kuodytė criticized the vote as disgraceful, saying that the outcome reflected the prevailing homophobic

A campaign against homophobia will be held during Baku European Games

Baku is hosting First European Games in June, 2015. Nefes LGBT Azerbaijan Alliance in collaboration with Free LGBT will hold “Compete for Equality” campaign during this event, reports Nefes LGBT Azerbaijan Alliance. The target group of this campaign is European Parliament, International Olympic Committee, ILGA World and ILGA Europe, Olympic Committees and Ministries of Foreign Affairs of

Crimea ‘does not need gays’, says most senior politician

De facto Crimean leader Sergei Aksyonov made the comments yesterday speaking to Interfax and Itar-Tass during a government session.He said: “We in Crimea do not need such people.”Continuing to say what would happen if the LGBT community attempted to hold a public gathering, he said: “Our police and self-defence forces will react immediately and in

Italy: Gossip magazine under fire for giving away homophobic joke book

An Italian gossip magazine, has come under fire for attaching a book with homophobic jokes to its latest edition. The book’s front cover features a cartoon with one man saying, “Do you want to play hide and seek?” and the other replying, “Ok, if you find me you can rape me. If you don’t find me…

Kenya: MP proposes “Stone to death the gays” bill

Kenya’s Republican Liberty Party wants to impose the death penalty for homosexuality and has put forward a bill that would see foreign gays and lesbians in the country stoned to death. The party’s draft Anti-Homosexuality Bill would also see gay and lesbian Kenyans jailed for life and stoned to death in public for ‘aggravated homosexuality’

Uganda: Pride Parade held following invalidation of anti-LGBT law

The parade took place on a beach in Entebbe, and is the first public demonstration since the law was invalidated last Friday. Around two hundred people were expected to attend the pride event, and were waiting for police protection before they marched. Many wore masks, as they did not want to be identified. The country’s Constitutional Court struck