Moldova’s Gay Rights Stance Unrm Its EU Aspiratns - Open Society Jtice Iniative

Contents:

• MOLDOVA GAY TRAVEL - LGBT RMATN JULY 2023
• MOLDOVA: REJECT ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ LAW
• MOLDOVA’S GAY RIGHTS STANCE UNRM ITS EU ASPIRATNS
• GLOBALGAYZ: THE BOOK
• GAY RIGHTS ULD BE MAJOR HURDLE FOR MOLDOVA'S EU BID
• OF ALL PLAC, IS MOLDOVA LEADG ON GAY RIGHTS?
• UN MOLDOVA JOT STATEMENT ON LGBTQI+ (LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER & TERSEX PEOPLE) RIGHTS
• MOLDOVA GAY TRAVEL - LGBT RMATN JULY 2023
• MOLDOVA: REJECT ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ LAW
• MOLDOVA’S GAY RIGHTS STANCE UNRM ITS EU ASPIRATNS
• GLOBALGAYZ: THE BOOK
• GAY RIGHTS ULD BE MAJOR HURDLE FOR MOLDOVA'S EU BID
• OF ALL PLAC, IS MOLDOVA LEADG ON GAY RIGHTS?
• UN MOLDOVA JOT STATEMENT ON LGBTQI+ (LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER & TERSEX PEOPLE) RIGHTS

MOLDOVA GAY TRAVEL - LGBT RMATN JULY 2023

A "rabow map and x" rankg protectns for lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) people across Europe has creded Moldova wh makg the most progrs to improve legal standards over the past year. One of Moldova's most proment LGBT-rights activists, GenrDoc-M rmatn center director Angela Frolov, who ntributed to the study by ILGA-Europe, the regnal sectn of the Internatnal Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex (LGBTI) Associatn, said she was pleased by the "leap.

Gay Marriage⚭✖ Unregnized, only same-sex marriage officialCensorship✔ No censorshipChangg Genr✖ Legal, but requir surgeryNon-bary genr regnn✖ Not legally regnizedEmployment Discrimatn✔ Sexual orientatn and genr intyHog Discrimatn✔ Sexual orientatn and genr intyMilary✖ Lbians, gays, bisexuals permted, transgenr people bannedDonatg Blood✖ Banned (fe ferral)Conversn Therapy✖ Not banned. Ten years after passg landmark legislatn to protect mori, cludg the much-persecuted LGBT muny, a recent survey has revealed that most people Moldova still hold negative attus toward lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) people. Acrdg to Feldman, 2021, an electn year, was marked by much hate speech, thanks to all the preelectn mpaigng, although 2022 has been marked by several homophobic verbal attacks by policians as well.

MOLDOVA: REJECT ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ LAW

While homosexualy is legal here, some two thirds of Moldovan society believe that LGBT people should be kicked out of the untry, and only one percent would be ready to accept an LGBT person as a fay member. ”Four homosexual people livg Chișău, the pal, shared their thoughts (on the basis of anonymy) regardg the most wispread assumptns, stereotyp, and prumptns about Moldova’s LGBT people.

But practice, the circumstanc and people I am surround by do not perm some reason, the majory of people believe that we’re pable of love, that homosexual relatnships are only about sex.

MOLDOVA’S GAY RIGHTS STANCE UNRM ITS EU ASPIRATNS

I’m sure that if one day, all Moldova’s LGBT people told their relativ about themselv unison, then homophobia would disappear our untryOthers exclaim that nobody bothers LGBT people here, askg why we need march and “some kd of special rights”. At some pot I stopped forcg myself to fall love wh general, I’m sure that if one day, all Moldova’s LGBT people told their relativ about themselv unison, then homophobia would disappear our untry.

When I ask my acquatanc om the LGBT muny, they tell me that their parents and lleagu don’t even spect their people who oppose LGBT march or the very existence of gay and lbian people don’t spect that their brothers, sisters, parents or children are LGBT. Perhaps march n help people overe this unnatural fear of their own children, and they n learn to see them as parents are still aaid to send children to schools wh openly gay teachers. It’s a method which worked Nazi Germany — and when members of the opposn, Jews, gays and lbians were sent to ncentratn mps, many people Germany saw that as que alright, sce they intified the groups the untry’s most prsg problem.

I know how I n help my fellow LGBT people here, and my fellow Moldovans general, bee I don’t work only on LGBT, 18, stuntWhout LGBT march, society would ntue to believe that only two or three gay people live the untry. Activists say they hope the small-sle march sends a posive signal to people who still remember the vic crackdown on a cy pri event 2008, when a b rryg LGBT activists was attacked by hundreds of antigay protters as police stood by and watched.

GLOBALGAYZ: THE BOOK

LGBT rights have stggled to fd their place on human-rights agendas the former Soviet Unn, where homosexualy and genr nonnformy, crimalized unr munism, still rry a ep social stigma. The most progrs Moldova is seen as a sharp ntrast to velopments neighborg Rsia and Ukrae, where thori are prsg a range of measur -- cludg a ban on so-lled homosexual "propaganda" -- seen as a massive setback for the LGBT rights movement. "[This is] pecially [te] the ex-Soviet untri, where homosexualy was always seen as a Wtern viance, and where [LGBT rights] are now seen as somethg imposed by the European Unn.

GAY RIGHTS ULD BE MAJOR HURDLE FOR MOLDOVA'S EU BID

LGBT and LGBTQ+ have several addnal variatns, cludg LGBTQ, LGBTQIA, LGBTQIA+, and 2SLGBTQIA+ (Two-spir, lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, qutng, tersex, and asexual, wh the + reprentg pansexual, agenr, genr queer, bigenr, genr variant, and pangenr). Two of the most notable advancements LGBTQI+ rights the US recent s are the legalizatn of gay marriage and the legalizatn of adoptn of children by same-sex upl. Acrdg to the Internatnal Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Associatn's annual report State-Sponsored Homophobia, same-sex nduct was crimalized 67 of the Uned Natns' 193 member stat 2020 and was facto illegal two more.

2022's iendlit natn for LGBTQ+ travelers is Canada, the first untry outsi of Europe (and the fourth untry the world) to legalize gay marriage, which did on July 20, 2005.

Another of the world's most gay-iendly untri, Swen has legalized both marriage and adoptn for same-sex upl, stalled anti-discrimatn protectns for both genr inty and sexual orientatn, end nstutnal protectns agast discrimatn, and crimalized vlence agast LGBTQ+ people. Individuals arrted for homosexual nduct are often subjected to addnal mistreatment, om torture and forced anal exams by shady law enforcement officials to oversized sentenc or extend pre-trial rceratn that n last for years.

OF ALL PLAC, IS MOLDOVA LEADG ON GAY RIGHTS?

(Berl) – The Moldovan parliament should reject a bill to troduce discrimatory anti-gay “propaganda” cls natnal law, Human Rights Watch said today a letter to lawmakers. “Moldovan legislators should put the need to protect people om bias, as well as the untry’s nstutn, and ternatnal law ahead of their personal views, ” said Boris Dtrich, lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) rights advocy director at Human Rights Watch. It would add a paragraph to Article 21 of the Law on the Rights of a Child that reads: “The state ensur protectn of a child om the propaganda of homosexualy for any purpose and unr any form.

UN MOLDOVA JOT STATEMENT ON LGBTQI+ (LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER & TERSEX PEOPLE) RIGHTS

Rhetoric about ‘protectg children’ around this ill-nceived bill, cynilly mis children’s rights to perpetuate the falsehood that to be gay or lbian is to be a danger to children. It would also amend Article 88 of the Co of Admistrative Offens to fe “propaganda of homosexualy” as: “Propaganda of homosexual relatns among mors by means of assembli, mass media, Inter, brochur, booklets, imag, d-vio clips, films and/or d-vio rerdgs, via sound rerdg, amplifiers or other means of sound amplifitn.

MOLDOVA GAY TRAVEL - LGBT RMATN JULY 2023

“Rhetoric about ‘protectg children’ around this ill-nceived bill, cynilly mis children’s rights to perpetuate the falsehood that to be gay or lbian is to be a danger to children, ” Dtrich said. All the activi were aimed to promote tolerance towards LGBT muny, to give to society rmatn about different aspects of homosexualy, and to make the LGBT muny more “visible” Moldovan society.

Durg Pri the followg activi took place: an art and photo exhibn where works of Moldovan paters and photographers were prented, an teractive theatric fom on discrimatn, a regnn ceremony «In Memoriam of the Victims of Homophobia», a “Safer Sex Party”, and a trag for “HIV/AIDS preventn the LGBT muny” wh participatn by Vrel Calist who is the ma specialist om the AIDS Center Etera Rota and who is also the Director of the Dermatovenereal Dispanser. It was tertg to hear about Swen’s very progrsive gay marriage law, which allows for gay marriage of one Swedish cizen to a non-cizen, as long as the relatnship is ed bonafi.

Although registered as an NGO on general genr issu, to avoid eventual nflicts wh the thori, remas the only stutn to protect gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenr rights Moldova. “Social and Psychologil Aspects of Homosexualy”, “Homosexualy and Human Rights” – two ternatnal semars held Chis December 1999 and Febary 2000 wh participatn of experts and members of siar anisatns om Romania, Rsia, Ukrae. GenrDoc-M is nstantly lobbyg different European stutns like the Council of Europe, European Parliament, OSCE, raisg their awarens on discrimatn and abe of gay and lbian rights Moldova.

MOLDOVA: REJECT ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ LAW

The two most known s GenrDoc-M has brought to the attentn of European muny were the spensn of gay and lbian meetg by the police on September 23rd 2000 and hate speech, ma by Moldovan parliamentarian and PACE member Vlad Cubreav.

Wh the project many semars and bat will be held, the magaze “Mirror” and three books will be published, assistance and social servic will be provid to the gay and lbian muny. It clud art exhibn, movie ftival, prentatn of gay anthology, ternatnal nference (wh participatn of openly gay prit Ulf Lidman, openly gay parliamentarian Tasso Stafilidis and Stig Ake Petersson (all om Swen), Dennis van r Vr (the Netherlands) as well as guts om Romania and Ukrae). In the Autonomo Terrorial Un of Gagzia, southern Moldova, the People’s Assembly, the regn’s legislative body, passed an anti-gay law, “On the prohibn of propaganda of non-tradnal relatns, LGBT, the terrory of ATU Gagzia”.

MOLDOVA’S GAY RIGHTS STANCE UNRM ITS EU ASPIRATNS

Orthodox prits wh believers take part a prott agast a rally anized by the LGBT (Lbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgenr) muny ont of Stefan cel Mare monument Chis, Moldova, 19 May 2019. Members of the LGBT (Lbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgenr) muny, protected by rt police, take part a march held to promote human rights and equaly Chis, Moldova, 19 May 2019.

Orthodox believers and a prit take part a prott agast a rally anized by the LGBT (Lbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgenr) muny, durg their march for human rights and equaly Chis, Moldova, 19 May 2019. On 11th May 2008 the police and thori stood by as the Moldova Pri Para was prevented by homophobic crowds who surround and timidated Para participants by surroundg the Pri b. Arsonists attack LGBTI rights lawyer Moldova, 2019/Jun/05Police Moldova e tear gas on anti-LGBT protters tryg to dispt Pri march, 2018/May/22Moldova LGBT march halted as Print says: ‘I am not print of the gays’, 2017/May/24Gay rights uld be major hurdle for Moldova’s EU bid, 2013/Nov/29Moldova Overturns ‘Gay Propaganda’ Ban In Anticipated EU Membership Move, 2013/Oct/14Moldova Overturns ‘Gay Propaganda’ Ban In Anticipated EU Membership Move, 2013/Oct/14Moldova Orthodox Church bans lawmakers om takg munn over LGBT discrimatn law, 2013/Jul/04Moldova: Send largt cy overturns lol ban on ‘gay propaganda’, 2013/Mar/01God’s LGBT Children Ukrae, Rsia, Belas, and Moldova: Homosexualy is Not Sful, Demonic, or a Mental Illns, 2013/Feb/14Moldova vot for anti-gay bigot ban, 2012/Dec/27Anti-discrimatn bill Moldova beg challenged by Orthodox Church, 2012/Apr/09LGBT Rights Ma Visible In Moldova’s Qut To Jo The European Unn, 2012/Mar/17Moldova elects pro-European judge Timofti as print, endg 3 years of polil adlock, 2012/Mar/16Moldova cy bans ‘gay propaganda’, 2012/Feb/24Moldova: Gay suici after police harrassment, 2010/Dec/09Moldova News & Reports 2009-11, 2010/Jun/08Moldova News & Reports 2005-08, 2009/Jan/01.

The Republic of Moldova, a untry Eastern Europe landlocked between Ukrae and Romania, overturned s “gay propaganda” ban on Friday an effort to ga European Unn membership. Bill which would see people who discrimate agast sexual mori at work face f or even jail pass send readg Moldova parliament Moldova has voted to impose f agast employers who discrimate agast lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr workers.

GLOBALGAYZ: THE BOOK

The Alliance for European Integratn (AIE) is attemptg to pass an anti-discrimatn bill Moldova, where the Council the untry’s third cy, Balti, have adopted an ordance banng the “propagandisg” of homosexualy.

Gay rights mpaigners have slammed the cy of Balti’s anti-gay law as ‘shameful’ The cisn by a cy Moldova to ban ‘homosexual propaganda’ has been brand ‘shameful’ by gay rights mpaigners.

1 Moldova Pri 2009 5/09 2 Ensurg eedom of assembly for LGBT people Moldova and Ukrae 4/10 3 A gay mted suici after talkg to police 12/10 4 Rights Defenr Conmns Vis By U. 1 Moldovan ernment to put legislatn place for sexual mori 2/05 2 Moldovan Authori Ban Gay Rally Outsi Parliament 5/05 3 GenrDoc-M announc Executive Director Post vancy 5/05 4 Authori Deny the Right for Peaceful Maniftatn of LGBT Organizatn 5/06 5 Court Declar Illegal the Refal to Authorize a Public Maniftatn 6/05 6 Discrimatn… Read more ». “A mensurate reactn will follow the timist attempt to legally register a gay uple our untry bee such cisns go agast the emently Orthodox and historil nscience of the people, ” the cleric warned.

GAY RIGHTS ULD BE MAJOR HURDLE FOR MOLDOVA'S EU BID

Cght the middle is Moldova’s small lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr (LGBT) muny, which for years has stggled agast open hostily the media, om the pulp, and across much of Moldovan some rpects, Moldova's schism mirrors that of Rsia, which passed a law last year that outlaws the display of homosexual orientatn and has been at loggerheads wh Wtern crics of s LGBT policy the n up to the Sochi Wter Olympics. This summer a ntroversial anti-propaganda law, seen by many as a direct attack on the LGBT muny, passed through the Moldovan parliament, but was stck down by the untry’s nstutnal urt for limg gay and transgenr anti-propaganda law was phed by the Moldovan Orthodox Church, which mand a ban on “propaganda” related to “homosexual, lbian, transsexual, bisexual, pedophilic, zoophilic, ctuo, and perverse behavr, ” acrdg to a statement released at the time.

“I don’t thk we would have passed the anti-discrimatn law whout the EU procs, but hopefully will now be hard to reverse , ” says Artm Zavadovschi, a Moldovan gay activist who received a UN human-rights award 2012 for his work.

“People Moldova stggle to fd work if they are openly gay, and they are aaid to go to the police if they are attacked bee of the reactn they will get, ” says Igor Stoi, a program ordator at Amnty Internatnal Stoi says 35 s have already been brought to Amnty this year which gay men or women have been physilly or psychologilly asslted. “This is one of the ma dangers of beg gay Moldova, ” he says, addg that he still has knife marks on his back om the men were ught and earlier this year sentenced to six years prison, but Veaclav is still upset that they were charged wh grievo bodily harm, rather than a hate pri march However, there have been some signs of improvement.

OF ALL PLAC, IS MOLDOVA LEADG ON GAY RIGHTS?

The first legally sanctned gay pri para took place Chis May, wh EU officials and foreign ambassadors marchg support and police offerg protectn to the Moldova, this was somethg of a turnaround. " Activists say they hope the small-sle march sends a posive signal to people who still remember the vic crackdown on a cy pri event 2008, when a b rryg LGBT activists was attacked by hundreds of antigay protters as police stood by and watched. Deep Social Stigma LGBT rights have stggled to fd their place on human-rights agendas the former Soviet Unn, where homosexualy and genr nonnformy, crimalized unr munism, still rry a ep social stigma.

WATCH: 'Live A Free Life' mpaign reach out to gay Moldovans The iative has been so succsful that Egali has been selected to host Eastern Europe's first official affiliate of It Gets Better, the proment U. This year PRIDE march is an ocsn to remd ourselv of the important llective mment to human rights, equaly, and the urgent need to stop homophobic and transphobic vlence. Signifint human rights issu clud: torture by ernment employe; harsh and life-threateng prison ndns; ser problems wh the pennce of the judiciary; arbrary or unlawful terference wh privacy; crimal libel laws; ser acts of rptn; lack of vtigatn of and acuntabily for vlence agast women; crim volvg vlence or threats of vlence targetg persons wh disabili, members of natnal, racial, and ethnic mory groups; crim volvg vlence or threats of vlence targetg lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, or tersex persons; and the worst forms of child labor.

UN MOLDOVA JOT STATEMENT ON LGBTQI+ (LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER & TERSEX PEOPLE) RIGHTS

Signifint human rights issu separatist-ntrolled Transnistria clud: forced disappearance by “thori”; torture and s of cel, human, or gradg treatment or punishment by “thori”; harsh and life-threateng prison ndns; arbrary arrt or tentn; polil prisoners or tae; ser problems wh the pennce of the “judiciary;” arbrary or unlawful terference wh privacy; ser rtrictns on ee exprsn, the prs, and the ter, cludg vlence, threats of vlence, or unjtified arrts or prosecutns agast journalists, censorship, se blockg, the existence of crimal libel laws, and overly rtrictive “laws” on nonernmental anizatns; substantial terference wh the eedom of peaceful assembly and eedom of associatn; ser rtrictns on eedom of movement; abily of cizens to change their ernment peacefully through ee and fair electns; rtrictns on polil participatn; ser acts of rptn; lack of vtigatn of and acuntabily for vlence agast women; crim volvg vlence or threats of vlence targetg lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, or tersex persons; existence or e of laws crimalizg nsensual same-sex sexual nduct between adults; existence of the worst forms of child labor. Signifint human rights issu clud credible reports of: torture or cel, human, or gradg treatment or punishment by thori; harsh and life-threateng prison ndns; ser problems wh the pennce of the judiciary; arbrary or unlawful terference wh privacy; ser rtrictns on ee exprsn and media, cludg vlence or threats of vlence agast journalists, and censorship; ser acts of ernment rptn; lack of vtigatn of and acuntabily for genr-based vlence, cludg domtic and timate partner vlence and sexual vlence; crim, vlence, and threats of vlence motivated by anti-Semism; crim volvg vlence or threats of vlence targetg persons wh disabili or members of natnal/racial/ethnic mory groups; crim volvg vlence or threats of vlence targetg lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, or tersex persons; and the existence of the worst forms of child labor. Signifint human rights issu the breakaway Transnistria regn clud credible reports of: forced disappearance by “thori:” torture and s of cel, human, or gradg treatment or punishment by “thori;” harsh and life-threateng prison ndns; arbrary arrt or tentn; polil prisoners or tae; ser problems wh the pennce of the “judiciary;” arbrary or unlawful terference wh privacy; ser rtrictns on ee exprsn and media, cludg vlence or threats of vlence agast journalists, unjtified arrts or prosecutns of journalists, censorship, and the existence of crimal libel “laws;” ser rtrictns on ter eedom; substantial terference wh the eedom of peaceful assembly and eedom of associatn, cludg overly rtrictive “laws” on the anizatn, fundg, or operatn of nonernmental anizatns and civil society anizatns; ser rtrictns on eedom of movement; abily of cizens to change their ernment peacefully through ee and fair electns; ser and unreasonable rtrictns on polil participatn; ser acts of “ernment” rptn; ser “ernment” rtrictns on or harassment of domtic and ternatnal human rights anizatns; lack of vtigatn of and acuntabily for genr-based vlence, cludg vlence agast women; crim volvg vlence or threats of vlence targetg lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, or tersex persons; existence or e of “laws” crimalizg nsensual same-sex sexual nduct between adults; and the existence of the worst forms of child labor.