"Every year, we celebrate the International Day Against Homophobia on May 17. And every year we continue to denounce violations of the rights of LGBTI people," said Harald Bergmann, Thematic Spokesperson of the Congress on Human Rights, on 15 May 2020. "In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, this year again we call for action at all levels of governance, and especially in our cities and regions, to denounce the homophobic violence that persists across Europe and to protect and guarantee LGBTI people their rights," he added.

As part of its activities to defend the right to non-discrimination, the Congress has published a "Manual on Human Rights for Local and Regional Elected Officials" with a chapter on good practices for the inclusion and defence of LGBTI rights. Examples presented include the establishment of codes of conduct prohibiting discriminatory attitudes towards LGBTI people, training of officials including municipal police officers and consultation with the LGBTI community in the development of local policies.

"The good practices that we have collected in this Handbook illustrate the capacity of European local and regional authorities to implement appropriate and successful responses on the ground," he concluded.