Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-05-22-Speech-2-446-000"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20120522.19.2-446-000"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Madam President, just like racism and sexism, homophobia is a blemish on European values, threatens the principle of equality, undermines the spirit of tolerance and diversity and blights the lives of victims. Therefore, the Council stands alongside Parliament today in the fight against it.
We need to be constantly vigilant in combating discrimination. This is about defending and putting into practice the values we have enshrined in the UN Charter and human rights instruments such as the Convention on Civil and Political Rights, in Treaties, in the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and in EU legislation. This is not only about sexual orientation and identity. It is about freedom, including the right to speak freely, to march, to demonstrate and to express oneself in public.
As a legislator, the Council has already taken steps to protect European citizens against discrimination. The Council directive on establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation is an important one. It prohibits discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation, as regards employment and occupation. Thus, it is already illegal for employers to discriminate against someone just because they happen to be gay – or indeed heterosexual – but, of course, discrimination does not take place only at work. European citizens also expect to receive equal treatment at school, when seeing a doctor, when renting a house and so on. No one should suffer discrimination because of their sexual orientation. No one should face harassment and bullying.
The Council is currently examining a Commission proposal for a new directive that would extend protection against discrimination to areas outside employment – areas such as social protection, health care, education and access to goods and services, including houses. As you know only too well, the negotiations on this proposal have not been easy. The Council has been examining the text since 2008. We need all Member States to agree before we can adopt this act. However, the work continues and the Danish Presidency will be presenting a progress report to the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council in June.
Legislation is, of course, the bedrock of human rights and equal treatment, but it can never be enough in itself. Another tool at our disposal is awareness raising. Changing attitudes is a long-term process, and I recall with satisfaction that five years ago, the values shared by the Council and the Parliament were given embodiment in the 2007 Year of Equal Opportunities for All, which was set up to remind our citizens that all people are entitled to equal treatment irrespective of their racial or ethnic origin, age, sexual orientation and so on.
We need to continue this work. The Fundamental Rights Agency is deepening our understanding of discrimination based on sexual orientation, and the EU also seeks to project its values in the wider world through its external actions. The European Parliament keeps a vigilant eye on this process.
A glance at the newspapers is enough to confirm that homophobic incidents are still all too common in Europe and beyond. The European Parliament plays a crucially important role in defending sexual minorities who are not adequately protected by politicians and the law. The EU has led the world in affirming lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people’s rights and we must continue this process together. This is a shared responsibility of this House, the Commission and the Member States, and it is a shared responsibility for all our citizens in the EU."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata | |
| lpv:videoURI |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples