Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour) | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy will be aware, I have made lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex, LGBTI, rights a human rights priority and I am firmly committed to combating discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity. I have expressed our strong disagreement with recent LGBTI-related Russian legislation. Such legislation, while purporting to protect young people, is more likely to result in the further stigmatisation and criminalisation of LGBTI young people. My Department has made our position known to senior officials at the Russian Embassy and it is my intention to raise the matter at my next meeting with a Russian Minister.

Reports of a recent upsurge in violence against LGBTI people in the Russian Federation are a matter of grave concern, including deeply disturbing Internet footage purporting to show young LGBTI individuals being lured to a location and violently assaulted. Let me state clearly that any act of violence directed against members of the LGBTI community in Russia, or anywhere else for that matter, is unacceptable and to be deplored. While polls suggest the recent legislation enjoys broad popular support in Russia, I believe no Government should legislate for prejudices but rather should confront and overcome them.

Ireland worked to ensure the EU statement at the 24th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva on 17 September contained a strong reference to our serious concerns about Russian LGBTI legislation and called on the Russian Federation to strive for greater inclusiveness and tolerance. Ireland’s Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe restated Ireland’s position last week and noted that respect for the rights and freedoms of LGBTI persons was now an accepted norm across Europe and that society had benefited from this. In my own statement to the UN General Assembly on 28 September I was critical of legal measures increasingly being adopted which did not protect human rights in law but instead discriminated against people on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The European Union is considering how best to ensure ourconcerns are kept firmly on the agenda of the Union’s structured dialogue with Russia, which includes specific consultations on human rights. Ireland will continue to participate actively in the Union’s preparations for these and other senior level meetings with Russian representatives.

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