The Centre Party called for a debate about LGBT

A conversation about LGBT-questions in Europe. A debate about why the difference between the countries is so large, and what one can, and should, do about it.

The Centre Party held a panel debate at Pride House on the Thurday afternoon. Participants were Selcuk Gok, activist in a Turkish LGBT-organisation, Anna Cikaroska,  LGBT representative originally from Poland, Lena Ek, the Centre Party's member of the European Parliament and Krister Fahlstedt, secretary general of the organisation for RFSL (The Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender rights).

A movement at its infant stage

The question that was up for debate was why the political views about LGBT is so different in Europe. The members of panel were relatively in agreement with each other that one of the main reasons for the differences is the different types of religion, history, education and leadership that exists in Europe. Seluc Gok accounted for the LGBT situation in Turkey today. He said that the LGBT movement is at its infant stage and is primarily made up by students and workers, people with little power, without the support of the government and a poor economy, which makes their work more difficult. The gay movement is large but there are tensions between female and male LGBT-people, since the quesions regarding the men get more attention.

Need help

- We need the EU to press these quesions, or else the progress will be very slow, Seluc Gok.
Anna Cikaroska from Poland said that the climate in Poland has become more and more liberal since the Berlin wall fell, the Pride Parade is no longer prohibited, but there is much more to work with. The membership in the EU has had a positive impact, she says. Lena Ek adds that the basik human rights exist in Eastern Europe; the right for food, work and housing, but that for example women's and LGBT-people's rights are not that established yet.

Show normality

On the question about what needs to be done in Europe to increase the establishment of human rights and full acceptance of LGBT people the panel answered that one needs to show how many people that are LGBT and prove some kind of normality. They also hoped that homophobia has disappeared within politics in ten years time and that many member states allow homosexual marriages and adoption. One needs to create alliances between the nations and make the restrictions stricter. 
-RFSL teaches about LGBT in the Swedish schools and we hope that the education will increase both in Sweden and Europe, Krister Fahlstedt.
- You need to be hopeful, Lena Ek ended.