Homophobia in Eastern Europe

The following is a report on a fringe meeting held at the Green Party Spring conference on ‘Homophobia in Eastern Europe’ with Aleksandra Kretkowska from the Polish Greens. Jean Lambert MEP's Press Officer was in attendance, and we have sent a report of it to the Lesbian and Gay Foundation in Manchester who are publishing a newsletter this week about LGBT refugees from Eastern Europe who are living in North West England because of homophobia in their respective countries. Lesley Hedges, who wrote this report, is also attending the LGBT Working Group Meeting at the European Green Party Council meeting in Brussels next Friday representing GPEW.

Lesley is a Euro candidate in Yorkshire & Humberside and also the Press Officer for the Euro campaign there. Aleksandra Kretkowska is currently in London on European Exchange Programme is assisting with the London Euro election campaign. Lesley is also the Green Party's Female LGBTQI Spokesperson. As an openly gay European Parliamentary and general election candidate I feel passionately about this issue, and am convinced that there are thousands of Eastern European LGBTQI people living in cities such as Manchester and London because of the impact of homophobia in their home countries. At a recent event organised by SERTUC (South East Region TUC) a gay immigrant and activist from Latvia told how he had had to leave three jobs there because of homophobia and was now earning one third of his salary in Latvia working in a London coffee shop because he felt free for the first time in his life.

http://www.lgf.org.uk/news the LGFF website.



Aleksandra Kretskowska from the Polish Greens spoke passionately about the prejudice and even violence faced by LGBT people in Eastern Europe. She was talking at a fringe at the Green Party Conference at the weekend about the continuing discrimination towards out gay men and lesbians in many countries including Poland, Latvia, Serbia and Lithuania. Prides and other demonstrations have been attacked by right wing and religious groups. Attitudes and opposition is slowly changing. She said that in Poland, Prides were small at first, with about 100 people attending but that over the last few years confidence has grown and so have the numbers who feel safe to come together to celebrate being gay and lesbian, bisexual and trans. They are gradually challenging the invisibility which has been forced on them.

The fringe was organised by Joseph Healy* at the Green Party’s Spring Conference in Blackpool at the weekend (20th to 23rd March) and is part of a programme of meetings and activities of LGBTQI Greens to champion LGBTQI rights in the UK, Europe and the world.

The Green Party’s LGBTQI group pledged to help LGBT people in Eastern Europe and elsewhere in the world. We will be asking for alternate European Green Party meetings to be held in Eastern European countries and will publicise the hardship faced by our communities there and encourage people to support them through letter writing or attending Prides and other activities there.

Aleksandra said that European Union laws are making a difference in countries in Eastern Europe. Green MEP Jeam Lambert, who represents the London Region, has pushed forward the human rights agenda including LGBT rights and has helped gay asylum seekers to find safety in the UK.

LGBTQI Greens also agreed to continue to combat homophobia in other parts of the world and to take action for IDAHO on May 17th

Notes

*Joseph Healy is International Officer for the LGBTQI Greens

The LGBTQI Greens website is at www.lgbtgreens.org.uk

More information on the Green Party of England and Wales at www.greenparty.org.uk

IDAHO (International Day Against Homophobia)