The DAAD Alumni Club of Montenegro is hosting the conference Justice in the Balkans: Equality for Sexual Minorities in Podgorica 23-25 October 2009. The European Commission on Sexual Oriention Law (ECSOL) gladly serves as a partner to this outstanding event in a very sensitive region. Ministers and representatives of Balkan governments, lawyers, academics and activists from Europe and North America will be present. Register now!
We will share strategies for bringing about legal and social change in the Balkans, discuss the experiences of other countries, and discuss the impact and context of European integration for these countries as they grapple with these challenges.
Human rights in the Balkan countries are not fully enjoyed, in part because they run counter to the legal, social and religious traditions of those countries. Individual rights and freedom of choice, including sexual and reproductive rights, are compromised or even negated. States, as the responsible bodies for protecting human rights, have not adequately fulfilled their obligations to civil society and to the general population within their boundaries. The full acknowledgement of human rights and the protection of the sexual freedom of all residents, including the LGBT population, should be organized along the lines of the contemporary standards of international and European human rights.