Legal Provisions, Discrimination and Uncertainty on LGBT community in Albania. Laws on human rights vs exerted rights of LGBT persons

Abstract

During the communist regime and until 1995 homosexual relations were senteced by law in Albania as a criminal offense. Membership in the Council of Europe and the ratification of the European Convention on Human Rights brought as a result the improvement of the legal framework and the abolition of the condemnation of homosexual relations. The first attempts of activism were shown in the form of meetings on joint activities organized by the Gay community in public spaces or cruising areas. In 1994, an Albanian newspaper published the first interview of a gay community member. In the early 2000s,”Gish Albania” and “Alga” were the first organizations, which provided specifically in their statute the protection of LGBT rights and made serious efforts to the promote of their rights and the establishment of a small nucleus of people that would encourage the formation of a LGBT community. On March 13, 2010, the Anti-Discrimination Law, one of the essential legal instruments that protects human rights in Albania, and also includes the prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, came into force. Albania has already the Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination. Two LGBT organizations have already been established in Albania: the Alliance against Discrimination LGBT and LGBT Pro Albania. They aim to protect the rights of sexual minorities in Albania and promote a national movement of social mobilization to protect and promote the rights of this community in Albania

Keywords

• lgbt; sexual orientation; commissioner for protection from discrimination; homophobia; or xenophobia