In Poland, “public officials and opinion makers should stop promoting an atmosphere of hate and intolerance vis-à-vis LGBTI people and instead, improve respect for their human rights. LGBTI are people, not an ideology”, said the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights in a memorandum published on Thursday 3 December.
This text follows online consultations conducted by Dunja Mijatović in October with Polish authorities, national human rights structures and NGOs working for the protection of LGBTI people in Poland.
The Commissioner expresses that she is “deeply concerned” about the rise in homophobic speeches by public officials and other influential figures in Polish society. She said she was “particularly disturbed” by the adoption of anti-LGBTI declarations and charters by many local authorities and municipalities. She calls for these texts to be revoked and “urges the Polish government” to ensure that no public support is given to this type of initiative.
Ms Mijatović calls for the rejection of the LGBTI bills currently before Parliament, expresses concern about intimidation of LGBTI people by the police and the public prosecutor’s office and “notes with concern an increasing practice of banning ‘Pride marches’”.
“Hate and dehumanisation threaten social cohesion”, stresses the Commissioner, who calls on Poland to “draw up the new national action plan on equality, and to do so as a matter of priority and in close consultation with civil society, particularly non-governmental organisations defending the human rights of LGBTI people”.
See the report: https://bit.ly/37wPr01 (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)