Brussels, 16/06/2016 (Agence Europe) - After an initial rejection in March, the Employment and Social Affairs Council has finally adopted a raft of conclusions on sexual equality. Two new parameters were effectively taken into account: the recasting work undertaken by the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the EU and the recent mass shooting in Orlando.
The conclusions are based around two different texts: a call for a communication (rather than a working document) on gender equality and a Council response to the Commission action plan on the rights of the LGBTI community. They were presented to the Council in March but were rejected by Hungary on the pretext of encroachment on its national sovereignty. The Dutch Presidency therefore reworked the section on lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender and intersex people (LGBTI), which was causing Hungary the most problems. The new version is therefore more moderate and instead of “asking the Commission to immediately implement measures contained in its list of measures promoting the equal treatment of LGBTI people”, it now reads, “inviting the Commission to promote” these measures, “in full respect of national identities and constitutional traditions, as well as the competences of member states in the realm of family law”. The new version also removes the invitation to member states to take action raising awareness about promoting equality for the LGBTI community.
In these circumstances and just a few days after the mass shooting in Orlando, Hungary decided not to reject the text but did not give it its support either. Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Austria, Malta, Luxembourg, Ireland, Greece and Portugal had prepared a joint statement in the event of Hungary rejecting the text on the LGBTI community. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)