Statement by the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights on the occasion of the International Day Against Homophobia

Today, in many countries around the world, we commemorate the decision of the World Health Organization (WHO), adopted on May 17, 1990, to remove homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases.  It was a big step forward towards freeing sexual minorities from having to live in hiding, bearing the stigma of a disease.

During the last twenty-six years, several documents have been drafted, both in international and Hungarian law, whose common objective is to enforce the idea of equal dignity and ensure that people belonging to these communities could openly and without any risk acknowledge their sexual orientation, sexual identity or, for that matter, their being in a relationship.

Sexual orientation and sexual identity are major traits of personality, requiring special protection; in the Constitutional Court's practice, the protection of same-sex couples is a derivative of the rights to human dignity, self-determination and free personal development. According to a survey conducted by the European Fundamental Rights Agency, almost half of the respondents have experienced harassment or discrimination because of their sexual orientation, sexual identity. Therefore, it is no surprise that almost two-thirds of those concerned working in educational institutions, and more than one-third of those working in a regular work environment still opt for hiding their sexual orientation. Their choice is motivated by their, in many cases justified, fear of being excluded or verbally and physically abused.

Legal regulation and the involvement of state institutions alone are not enough to create a tolerant, receiving society; however, they play a very important role: May 17 reminds us that we have to continue our efforts aimed at turning the stigma still borne by persons belonging to sexual minorities into a bad historic memory.