On Monday 26 January, the European branch of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA-Europe) published a report on “conversion practices”.
The analysis is based on data from the ‘LGBTIQ III’ survey conducted in 2023 by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) which examines the exposure of LGBTQI people to these practices aimed at changing sexual orientation or gender identity.
According to the report, these diverse practices – pressure exerted by the family, prayers or religious rituals, psychological or psychiatric treatment – are still widespread, with at least 24% of LGBTQI people surveyed stating that they had undergone at least one of them. This proportion increases if the person is non-binary (neither exclusively female nor exclusively male), a refugee, or has attempted suicide.
In addition, the study points out the long-term consequences of these practices on mental health, feelings of safety and access to support, in order to give greater weight to calls for them to be banned in the EU, such as the citizens’ initiative submitted to the European Commission last November (see EUROPE 13754/27).
The ILGA-Europe report: https://aeur.eu/f/khs
FRA investigation: https://aeur.eu/f/kht (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)