“There, citizens were advised to contact the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, if the actions or statements of officials violate their rights”, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
This is stated in the response of Lubinets’ office to RFE/RL’s request to comment on the statements of People’s Deputy Maryana Bezuglai regarding LGBT.
“All people, regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, physical condition or other characteristics, have the right to equal treatment and respect. This is not just a personal belief – it is a principle enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine and international standards in the field of human rights. Any public discussions must be based on respect for human dignity, principles of equality and non-discrimination. “Sexual orientation, gender identity, or physical characteristics are not “deviations from the norm” – they are aspects of human diversity and are recognized as such by human rights standards,” the response reads.
The Office of the Ombudsman emphasized that state representatives and public figures should be aware of responsibility for their words, “since they shape public opinion, and not contribute to additional stigmatization of individuals and/or their groups.”
“The protection of human rights is an integral part of the European integration process of Ukraine, because the principles of equality, non-discrimination and respect for human dignity are enshrined in the founding documents of the European Union. Respect for human rights, including the rights of the LGBTIQ+ community, is an important criterion for assessing a country’s progress towards EU membership. With our words and actions, we must shape a society in which inclusion is the norm. Ukraine is building a future where everyone has the right to be themselves, to live, work and develop freely,” the commissioner’s office added.
Maryana Bezugla, a people’s deputy from the “Servant of the People” party, who left the faction in July last year, published a post on Facebook about the “quota boom” on January 13. In particular, Bezugla wrote that she considers LGBTQ+ “not the norm, but a psychophysiological deviation.” The deputy compared the orientation to psoriasis or medical obesity, besides, she considers it unacceptable to have job quotas for representatives of the LGBTQ+ community.
At the same time, the World Health Organization officially deleted homosexuality from the classification of diseases a quarter of a century ago.
Bezugla’s post was duplicated in Ukrainian and English and garnered a lot of reactions.