Government and human rights NGOs set to boost fight against homophobia

The Government will make every effort to improve the protection of human rights and freedoms and make Montenegrin society more tolerable, Deputy Prime Minister Duško Marković highlighted at today’s meeting with the representatives of civil sector engaged in promoting human rights.

The meeting, aimed at strengthening mutual cooperation and support, was preceded by a long and constructive communication between the Government and the civil society’s stakeholders.

The meeting agreed to set up a working group at the governmental level to draft a program document against homophobia, followed by the action plan, and two expert groups to prepare an analysis of the legal framework in terms of compliance with international standards and jurisprudence of human rights, as well as the analysis of the presence of LGBT human rights in the textbooks. These expert groups will offer suggestions, opinions and expert explanations that may be of assistance to the Government in its further activities.

The two sides agreed that the meeting sends out a strong positive message, promotes the established trust and emphasises the civil society’s significant role and contribution to anti-discrimination policy and practices.

The established cooperation is to be formalised through the signing of the Memorandum on cooperation between competent ministries and the NGOs engaged in promoting and protecting human rights of LGBT people.