The three-day regional conference "State of play of the rights of LGBTIQ+ persons in the Western Balkans and Türkiye” was concluded in Pristina, in an important gathering organised by ERA – LGBTI Equal Rights Association for the Western Balkans and Türkiye, Center for Social Groups Development (CSGD), and Center for Equality and Liberty (CEL) with the support of the European Union and Council of Europe.

Addressing the audience in the opening of the event, Frank Power - Head of the Council of Europe Office in Pristina, stated: “Much more must be done to challenge negative attitudes, promote values, and change the legislation. The anti-gender movement is a fundamental threat not only to LGBTIQ+ people but they try to exclude diverse voices and threaten our democracy. It goes hand in hand with democratic backsliding. All progressive voices must work together to push back against this threat”.

Alessandro Biancardi - Deputy Head of Co-operation in the EU Office, stressed that “all forms of hatred are incompatible with EU values, and they represent a threat to democracy and human rights. Hate speech undermines the foundation of our society. Our work should be based on protecting vulnerable groups: LGBTIQ+ people, Roma people, and people with disability. Regional initiatives are crucial as they aim to address the core fundamental rights. The EU is committed to supporting initiatives in the region to address LGBTI rights and against all forms of hate speech and intolerance that are incompatible with democracy, human rights, and other fundamental values”. 

Danijel Kalezić - ERA’s co-chair, underlined that the anti-gender movement has become successful in undermining the rights of LGBTIQ+ people. "Despite the progress that has been made, our community still faces hate speech and hate crimes. Policies and change are slow, but we need to push further. Both challenges and opportunities co-exist. Our messages are stronger when we are united. We are facing challenges from many directions, affecting not only LGBTIQ+ people but many other communities. These are strategic actions to undermine democracy in our region and beyond. If they succeed in our region, they will continue worldwide. The Western Balkans and Türkiye region is a battlefield between those who want democracy and those who are threatened by democracy. We need new strategies and solutions to tackle these challenges. We need donors to reform their policies since often they fail to meet the needs of organisations.”

While on behalf of the local organisers, Arber Nuhiu, CSGD Director, said: “Our goal is a society that respects every individual regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics. It is important to come together and face the upcoming challenges. The latest ERA study shows how much stronger the anti-gender movement is getting. LGBTIQ+ people in the region still do not get adequate services, while public space for LGBTIQ+ people is shrinking. We live in a very conservative society, and we aim to challenge stereotypes and make sure everyone is equal."

During the conference, panel discussions were held on the role of local and international stakeholders in addressing the rising anti-gender movement and identifying good practices from the region and beyond on tackling this issue, including through developing counternarrative to hatred. 

The human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, intersex, and queer (LGBTIQ+) people have increasingly come under threat and attacks across Europe, including in the Western Balkans and Türkiye region. The anti-rights and anti-gender movements have become vocal and often successful opponents of the rights of the LGBTIQ+ community among others Anti-rights and anti-gender movements have attacked Prides and other public events taking place in the region. Further, they have advocated against the adoption of legislation, and have hindered necessary policy reforms, of crucial importance for the LGBTIQ+ community in areas such as education, health, or access to justice. LGBTIQ+ people have become targets of hate speech, violence, and further stigmatisation by society and institutions, making their lived reality much more complex and unsafe. 

This change in context requires a stronger alliance between international and domestic institutions, civil society organisations, to address adequately these challenges. This regional conference offered a platform for all stakeholders (international and local organisations, civil society organisations) to establish a stronger alliance and address dangerous trends and developments experienced by the LGBTI+ communities in the Western Balkans and Türkiye, as well as in Eastern Partnership countries.

This conference was organised with the support of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Unit of the Council of Europe and the European Union and Council of Europe joint programmes “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” and the “Partnership for Good Governance”, implemented by the Council of Europe.