Kosovo's Sexual Minorities Hail Constitution
17 April 2008 Pristina _ A Kosovo organisation has praised the new constitution as a significant step in tackling discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation.
“Considering that the situation of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community in Kosovo is of a marginalised extreme, Article 24 of Kosovo’s Constitution, on Equality Before the Law, is a big achievement in the area of human rights in Kosovo”, the statement by the Centre for Social Emancipation, QESh says.
“QESh is pleased that finally human rights are not discriminated on paper, no matter the differences, including sexual orientation,” it adds thanking the drafters of the constitution and the Constitutional Commission, as well as civil society groups and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe for pushing the issue.
The gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community in Kosovo is not at all visible as a result of conservative and discriminatory views held by local people.
Attacks on members of this community are not unheard of, and their concerns have often been neglected by authorities.
QESh, which is one of the two associations advocating rights and awareness of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community in Kosovo, says the general public must understand the importance of Article 24 of the Constitution since it prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation along with other forms of prejudice.
"This legal cornerstone of the modern and sovereign statehood of Kosovo has been praised by the main stakeholders as a very modern constitution, which leaves no community or social reality neither discriminated nor left out,” the statement adds.
In the meantime, QESh expresses hope “that the full implementation of the legal provisions will be considered seriously by the state and citizens.”
Kosovo's first post-independence constitution was backed by Parliament earlier this month and comes into force on June 15.
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/9466/