Brussels, 08/12/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 7 December, the European Commission published in complete discretion a list of actions to strengthen the rights of LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex) people in the European Union.
The plan was presented by European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality Vera Jourova at the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO) on Monday but has not been the subject of a specific communication, as it has simply been published on the website of the Commission's Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers. The plan has been especially disappointing for certain associations, including ILGA-Europe, which believes the Commission has failed to present an ambitious strategy for LGBTI people.
The list of actions presented by the Commission covers a series of areas fairly skimpily in which LGBTI people can come up against difficulties - such as health, education, employment, asylum and free movement. The Commission also mentions the violence these people can suffer, including hate crimes and hate speech.
The Commission lists ten actions to be undertaken. It therefore calls for the legal arsenal to be strengthened and for increased monitoring of LGBTI rights. It proposes integrating the issue of these rights into the negotiations with EU candidate countries, especially in accession reports. At the same time, European measures would be strengthened against discrimination in education, social services or social protection by 2019. The Commission also commits to monitoring the transposition and respect of European legislation better, by using infringement procedures if necessary, and it suggests collecting more information on the discrimination these people face.
The plan also mentions information campaigns on LGBTI rights in order to change the view of European citizens on LGBTI people, and more concretely, the plan mentions financial support for associations that campaign on this area, or for private actors involved in these issues.
“We must express our disappointment”, ILGA-Europe responded on Tuesday 8 December. It does not believe the action plan succeeds in proposing serious new actions to fight against the current discrimination. The association commits to working with the Commission in order to identify the actions that are not in the plan - like the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity in European legislation on hate crime. ILGA-Europe also wants a clear framework for assessing progress and reviewing the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms. In addition, it wants to know what the Commission concretely intends to do when it mentions strengthening the anti-discrimination legal arsenal. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)
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