A law that extends marriage and adoption rights to same-sex couples in Finland took effect last Wednesday, 1st March 2017. Members of Finland’s Parliament approved a same-sex marriage bill — which also extended adoption rights to gay and lesbian couples — in 2014. The Associated Press reported more than 100,000 people signed a petition that
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On 3rd-5th May, 2017 representatives of the National LGBT* rights organization LGL participated in a partners‘ meeting of the project “Developing research capacity in Eastern Europe” in Warsaw, the capital of Poland. During the meeting partners discussed the upcoming activities of the project, the concept of a survey on LGBT issues in education and its
Today, Tuesday 7 March 2017 from 14:00 – 16:00, the Intergroup on LGBTI Rights of European Parliament will host a roundtable on the rights of LGBTI Asylum seekers in the reform of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS). At this round table, they will discuss how to guarantee that the proposals to reform the European asylum
A new bill introduced to the Philippines parliament would make it illegal to harass women and LGBTI people in public places. Senator Risa Hontiveros filed the ‘Safe Streets and Public Spaces Act of 2017’ Bill. The Bill would outlaw catcalling, wolf-whistling, cursing, leering, groping, persistent requests for name and contact details. It will also be illegal to
I’m a new volunteer in Vilnius, working at The National LGBT* Rights Organization LGL; I’m from Rome, Italy, so this country it’s really different from what I’m used to, but also interesting because of this. I did my On-arrival Training after just four days from my arrival in Vilnius, so for me it was a
It has been quite some time since LGL hosted its’ last movie evening. In addition, since we missed it so much, our new EVS volunteer Giordano took initiative on engaging LGBT community by bringing movie evenings to our events’ calendar. Last week, everyone came for Gaycation (documentary series) screening. It follows Ellen Page and Ian
Country’s first lesbian wedding took place last weekend, but gay couples are not allowed to adopt. Slovenia permitted same-sex marriage for the first time, with a law coming into effect that gives gay couples largely the same rights as heterosexuals, but bars them from jointly adopting children, Reuters reported. At least one same-sex couple got married in Slovenia
Moonlight has made Oscars history as the first gay-themed film to win Best Picture and was a win for LGBTI people of colour everywhere. In what is set to become arguably the most memorable moment in an Academy Awards ceremony ever, Moonlight won Best Picture after it was mistakenly announced as La La Land. On
On February 22d-23rd, 2017 Vladimir Simonko, Executive Director of the National LGBT* rights organization LGL, participated in a high level ministerial conference on LGBTIQ road map, held on the occasion of the presidency of the Council of the EU in Malta. The conference on LGBTIQ road map witnessed the first reporting back on the European
There is a growing trend in Europe and beyond towards granting same-sex couples legal recognition for their relationships, which confers certain specific protections. The first country to provide “registered partnerships” was Denmark in 1989, while The Netherlands was first to adopt same-sex marriage in 2001. Today, 47 countries in the world, 27 of which are
On 20th of February, 2017 students from Vilnius University, Faculty of Communication, visited LGBT* centre. In the beginning of the meeting, students shortly introduced themselves and spoke about their interests. Moreover, students shared their knowledge about LGBT* human rights issues. Some have admitted that they know at least one LGBT* person in their close environment,
Finland’s Parliament has voted down efforts to scupper plans for same-sex marriage to become legal just days before it is set to become law. In November 2014, the Finnish Parliament passed a citizens’ initiative on gender-neutral marriage by a tight vote of 105-92, after a number of previous defeats. The country’s President Sauli Niinistö signed marriage