LGL EVS volunteer: My Mid Term

Already five months have passed since I arrived in Lithuania, time just flies by. So the time for my mid term has come. This time instead of 19 people and 4 days of training, we were just eight volunteers so we did a shorter training in 3 days, but it was still amazing. We were

LGL EVS Volunteer: Baltic Pride 2017, Tallinn

The Baltic Pride 2017 this year took place in the beautiful Estonian capital of Tallinn. I was waiting to attend this event, and I decided to reach Tallinn by hitchhiking with a friend of mine from Vilnius, and be hosted by local people through Couchsurfing, because we thought it was the better way to fully

Prime Minister Theresa May has expressed her personal support for equal marriage in Northern Ireland. The Prime Minister penned an op-ed for PinkNews today to mark the 50th anniversary of the partial decriminalisation of homosexuality. The Conservative leader used the piece to address the ongoing ban on same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, where progress has been

Activists in Violence-plagued Honduras City Hold Pride Parade

Hundreds of people from across Honduras on Saturday participated in a Pride parade that took place in one of the world’s most dangerous cities. Kendra Stefani Jordany, a transgender woman who is running for the Central American Parliament, is among the roughly 400 people who took part in the march in the Honduran city of

Tens of thousands of people turned out for Pride in Seoul, South Korea on July 15. An estimated 85,000 people joined in the celebrations which took place in the capital city, making it the biggest Pride parade to be held in the city yet. Despite the rain, people from the LGBT community joined in the

53 members of the US Congress have written to Donald Trump, pleading with him to speak out against the persecution of gay men in Chechnya. The federal representatives have called on the President to condemn the ongoing kidnappings, torture and killings of gay men which have plagued the region since April. Despite repeated urgings, Trump

Chechnya: Lesbians, Bi and Trans People Now in Firing Line

All LGBT people are targeted in Chechnya, but the situation is far more urgent for gay men. The Russian LGBT Network was not surprised the Chechen government started its persecution of gay men again. A spokesperson for the Network told Gay Star News that the persecution likely slowed down during the Islamic Holy Month of Ramadan.

LGL Urges President to Veto Amendments to Law on Equal Opportunities

On  July 11th, 2017 the National LGBT* Rights Organization LGL appealed to Dalia Grybauskaitė, the President of the Republic of Lithuania, asking to veto the amendments to the Law on Equal Opportunities of the Republic of Lithuania and return them to the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania for further considerations. If approved, the proposed

The UK Supreme Court has ruled same-sex married couples should get the same pension benefits as straight couples. John Walker, an ex-British army officer, brought the case with the help of human rights organization Liberty. He has been battling for five years to get this ruling. In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court ruled a loophole

On June 16th, 2017 the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) informed the Lithuanian Government that it will consider a petition by Pijus Beizaras and Mangirdas Levickas regarding refusal by the national authorities to investigate into instances of homophobic hate speech online. Applicants, who are represented by the National LGBT* Rights Organization LGL, claim that

Malta Passes Equal Marriage

On 12th July, 2017 Malta’s Parliament has overwhelmingly passed marriage equality. The country’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, a strong supporter of LGBT equality, brought forward proposals to introduce equal marriage earlier this year. The proposals were given final approval by the country’s Parliament, paving the way for gay couples to start marrying. The law furthers reforms

Rainbow Rights Project Partners Met in Tallinn

On 7th July, 2017 the representatives of the National LGBT* rights organization LGL attended the “Rainbow Rights: Promoting LGBTI Equality in Europe” project network meeting in Tallinn (Estonia). During the meeting, the associate partners and other stakeholders learned about the project’s upcoming activities and discussed recent LGBT* human rights and policy developments in the Baltic