Gender Equality Law BiH: We will not go back on human rights!!!

The Working group for the new draft of the Gender Equality Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina decided to take out the harassment and violence based on sexual orientation. Together with organizations Rights for All, Organization Q, Woman and Society, Center for Legal Aid for Women and numerous others, CURE firmly stands against such a move as it clearly violates the rights of many individuals, and the point of the new draft is to improve the law. Taking out sexual orientation as a basis for gender based violence from the law that is supposed to guarantee gender and sex rights for all is out of question, and we will not go back with human rights! As repeated several times at the Public Discussion on the new draft of the Law on Gender Equality (held on June 25th in Sarajevo), not only by civil initiatives' representatives but by a Federal prosecutor, several lawyers and other professionals, this type of change is unacceptable and would mean a serious setback for human rights in our country.

As one of the „reasons“ for this serious violation of human rights and an attempt to exclude persons whose rights are violated on the basis of their sex, gender and/or sexual orientation, the representatives of Gender Agency BiH stated that „this issue“ would be resolved through the Anti-discrimination law. Just to remind you, it is the law still on the waiting list for adoption, and since December 2008. Another illegitimate excuse for the outrageous attempt to go backwards through laws is this statement by Alma Como, member of the Working Group on the new draft of the Gender Equality Law BiH, also representative of the House of Peoples, member of the Joint Commission for Human Rights, rights of children, youth, immigration, refugees, asylum, and ethics of the joint Commission for European Integrations:

"For “the other status” you can subsume everything listed here which I do not like – this sexual expression and sexual orientation. I am saying it openly. I do not want it to be listed/included in the law. I do not like it written into the law. I think it falls under some other category and we can subsume it all under some other status."

Read it here: http://www.parlament.ba/sjednica/1/0/142.html (in local languages only)

At the Public Discussion on the new draft of this important law, no members of the Working group were present (and no Parliament representatives as their sessions take place at the same time as public discussions not only in Sarajevo, but also Mostar and Banja Luka). The sanctions for perpetrators remain as before, 6 months to five years.
Tell the Gender Agency that we will not go back with human rights!

Check out the draft here: http://www.arsbih.gov.ba/?PID=7&RID=344

Civil initiatives plan to do all it legally takes to ensure that the Gender Equality Law of this country guarantees the rights of everyone as planned.