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Building a more supportive and tolerant environment for LGBTI children

The international Felis conference 2024, organised by the NGO Genderdoc with support of the EU/Council of Europe joint project “Combating discrimination, hate speech and hate crimes in the Republic of Moldova”, took place on 12-13 April 2024, in Chisinau Moldova. It aimed to raise awareness on issues faced by LGBTI children.

Accordingly, presentations and discussions focused on preventing bullying in schools, countering hate speech against LGBTI teenagers, as well as on developing strategies to build a more supportive and tolerant environment for LGBTI children in schools by advancing reforms locally.

The event commemorated the Moldovan young transgender teen named Felis, who committed suicide in 2022 because of severe bullying and hatred that she faced, and to remember all the LGBTI individuals lost because of queerphobia.

The conference brought together more than 130 participants - parents of LGBTI children, CSOs activists from all over the world, as well as representatives of anti-discrimination institutions and other relevant actors with expertise in the field of education and psychology from the Republic of Moldova. It provided a platform for exchange of experiences among parents, discussing challenges faced, promoting inclusion, ensuring adequate support and protection to those in need.

The protection of the human rights of LGBTI persons has always been one of the key priorities for the Council of Europe, and in this domain, the good cooperation has been established with the civil society organisations in the Republic of Moldova.  The joint effort in supporting and protecting the human rights of LGBTI persons and other vulnerable groups shall be continued, taking into account relevant standards and examples of good practices at European and international level.

This activity was organised by Genderdoc-M with the support of the European Union and Council of Europe joint programme “Partnership for Good Governance”, co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe, and implemented by the Council of Europe, in the framework of the project “Combating discrimination, hate speech and hate crimes in the Republic of Moldova”.

CHISINAU, REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA 12-13 APRIL 2024
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Strasbourg, France Strasbourg, 1-2 July 2024
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Addressing hate speech and hate crime: regional gathering of the network of Equality Bodies from the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership Region

A two-day workshop on addressing hate speech and hate crime took place at the premises of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, involving Equality bodies from the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership regions.  The event supported by the EU and Council of Europe, gathered 50 representatives from both regions who discussed and exchanged on the best practices, measures and common challenges when addressing hate speech and hate crime. Through monitoring and reporting, policy advocacy, raising awareness and supporting victims equality bodies play a fundamental role in protecting human rights and ensuring that all individuals are treated equally.

In her opening remarks, Angela Longo, Head of Anti-discrimination Co-operation Unit, Council of Europe, underlined the significant progress in engaging with Equality Bodies through this network, regularly exchanging best practices and addressing the challenges of hatred and intolerance in societies. She highlighted that this new chapter of discussion delves into the grey area between hate speech and hate crime, addressing issues of incitement and biases,

Representatives from Equality Bodies had the opportunity to discuss and enhance their knowledge on the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers Recommendation to member States on combating hate crime, adopted on 7th May 2024, as well as gain a clearer understanding of EU standards in the field of hate crime. Moreover, participants engaged in exchanges with peers from the Spanish Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia (OBERAXE), who shared insights on addressing hate speech in the public discourse. The National Office Against Racial Discrimination (UNAR) in Italy provided practical examples for developing counter-narratives and raising awareness initiatives.

They also explored opportunities to advocate for legislative reform, foster multisectoral co-operation, enhance data collection, and overall improve national mechanisms to counter hate crimes.

This seminar was organised within the action “Promoting equality and combating racism and intolerance in the Western Balkans” and the project “Promoting equality and non-discrimination: towards more resilient and inclusive societies” – co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe, and implemented by the Council of Europe  under the joint Programmes “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” and “Partnership for Good Governance”.

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