Speeches - LGBTI

Speech

IDAHOT+ Forum 2024, not a time for business as usual: wake up!

15/05/2024 The Hague, The Netherlands

Speech given at the Opening Plenary Session of IDAHOT+ Forum 2024 at The Hague Minister, Excellencies, Friends, It is a great pleasure to be with you. I'm a 65-year-old gay Irish man, and this means I have lived through significant times of social development. For the first 20 years of my life, I...

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Speech

ILGA Europe Annual Conference 2023: the resilience of the movement for LGBTI equality hinges on solidarity

27/10/2023 Strasbourg

Opening speech by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović at ILGA Europe Annual Conference Ljubljana 2023 “Rising to the moment” - Plenary and panel discussion: The practice of solidarity – Reflections on unity, trust and true connections. Good morning, it is a...

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Speech

IDAHOT+ Forum 2023: member states should build on momentum to end conversion practices targeting LGBTI people

11/05/2023 Strasbourg

Address to the European IDAHOT+ Forum 2023, hosted in the framework of Iceland’s Presidency of the Council of Europe in Reykjavik, Iceland Dear Ministers and state representatives, dear activists, dear friends, Each year, the IDAHOT forum is an important opportunity to take stock of progress and...

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Comprehensive approach addressing hate crime and violence against LGBTI people

Comprehensive approach addressing hate crime and violence against LGBTI people. Keynote speech by Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, on the occasion of the IDAHO 2015 Forum “Ending hate crime and violence” (Budva, 11 May 2015) CommDH/Speech(2015)2

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Speech

The human rights challenges faced by intersex people need to be urgently addressed

26/01/2023 Strasbourg

At the Conference on Advancing the human rights of intersex people. High-Level session: launching the work on the drafting of a new Committee of Ministers Recommendation on equality of rights of intersex people, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, gave the...

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Speech

Europride 2022 - closing remarks by Dunja Mijatović

16/09/2022 Belgrade

At the closing session of the International Human Rights Conference held in Belgrade for Europride 2022, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, gave the following speech: "Dear colleagues, dear Europride organisers, dear activists, dear friends, This Europride has...

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Speech

ECRI 2021 annual seminar with Equality Bodies

18/10/2021 Strasbourg

Joining Forces to Promote and Protect the Human Rights of LGBTI Persons. Opening statement by Dunja Mijatović. Dear all, dear friends, It is a real pleasure for me to be here this morning with you for this seminar organised by ECRI, an essential partner in the fight against all forms of...

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Speech

Exchange of views with the European Committee of Social Rights

17/05/2021 Strasbourg

Good afternoon to you all and thank you very much for the invitation to this exchange of views! This is the first time that we meet, and the timing is certainly good. Even though there are signs of relief now, at least in Europe, the Covid-19 pandemic has been much more than just a health crisis:...

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Speech

Council of Europe Conference to mark the European Day against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children

12/11/2020 Strasbourg

Good afternoon to you all and thank you very much for the invitation to contribute to this important event! The world we and our children live in is often described as over-sexualised. Children are exposed to sexualised images and messages from the media, advertisements and popular culture on a...

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Speech

How to advance the human rights of intersex people: lessons learned from Finland

30/06/2020 Strasbourg

Webinar organised by the Permanent Representation of Finland to the Council of Europe and the Council of Europe Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Unit I would like to start with a heartfelt thank you to Finland for taking the initiative of this webinar and for its expressed commitment to...

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Speech

Keynote speech at ILGA-Europe Annual Conference 2019

25/10/2019 Prague

Dear friends, I must start with paying tribute to the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York city, which you celebrate this year. 50 years ago, those who had grown tired of hiding stood up against oppression. There have been considerable gains since then in securing the rights of...

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Video message for the opening ceremony of the 17th Budapest pride Festival

Video message for the opening ceremony of the 17th Budapest pride Festival. 2 July 2012. Video message

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1164th Plenary Meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council

1164th Plenary Meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, address by Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights - 16 November 2017, Vienna. Read the speech: CommDH/Speech(2017)7

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Keynote address at the 6th European Transgender Council

European societies should recognise the full diversity of gender identities. Keynote address by Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, at the European Transgender Council “Transforming Europe – 10 years of movement building” (Bologna, 3 June 2016) CommDH/Speech(2016)2

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LGBTI people are not second-class citizens

LGBTI people are not second-class citizens. Keynote address by Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, at the European Governmental LGBTI Focal Point Network Roundtable (Strasbourg, 17 November 2016) CommDH/Speech(2016)5

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