3 HUMAN RIGHTS OF LGBTI PERSONS 3.1 LEGAL AND POLICY MEASURES FOR THE PROTECTION OF LGBTI PERSONS 90. In a memorandum published in 2007, the Commissioner’s predecessor expressed concern about the tense climate surrounding the gay pride event on 23 July 2005, initially prohibited by the mayor of Riga, but subsequently authorised by the Riga administrative court following an appeal lodged by the organisers. He noted that several politicians, including the Deputy Speaker of Parliament at the time, openly opposed the initiative. The former Commissioner’s memorandum also made reference to a violent attack against gay activists in the context of another pride event in July 2006, which had been prohibited on security grounds. Participants who arrived in Riga had been threatened by hostile opponents and had to be evacuated from their hotel.76 At the time, the low level of social awareness of LGBTI persons was reflected in the results of Eurobarometer survey in 2006, when only 6% of respondents said they had homosexual acquaintances.77 91. The results of a survey carried out by FRA in 2012 showed that 35% of the respondents from the LGBT community in Latvia considered that the expression of hatred and aversion towards LGBT persons in public was very widespread and 48% thought it was fairly widespread.78 92. During the visit, the Commissioner discussed with the relevant state and municipal authorities measures taken to ensure the safety and security of LGBTI persons as well as their right to freedom of assembly and expression, including in the context of pride events. The Commissioner noted the generally improved climate as concerns the peaceful conduct of pride events, and welcomed the fact that Europride 2015 in Riga took place without significant incident and even rallied support from some members of parliament.79 The Commissioner called on his interlocutors to build on this progress and invest in raising awareness among the general public about equal treatment policies and equal access to human rights for all. The Commissioner specifically stressed the responsibility of political leaders to promote those principles and values in Latvian society. 93. As regards the relevant institutional framework, the Commissioner observes that currently there are no public policies that would address the human rights of LGBTI persons in a comprehensive and systematic way.80 Moreover, according to NGOs and researchers, statistical information on LGBTI people is not collected, and there is only anecdotal evidence of cases of violence against sexual minorities.81 94. The Latvian Constitution guarantees equality before the law and the courts and the implementation of human rights without discrimination.82 While there is no general law on protection against discrimination, various sectorial laws contain specific prohibitions of discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation. Latvia’s legal provisions against discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation exceed the minimum requirements of the EU Employment Equality Directive 2000/78/EC, and such discrimination is forbidden in employment (both in the private and in the public sectors) and in civil service.83 Further, on 18 April 2013, the parliament amended the Electronic Mass Media Law, Memorandum to the Latvian Government, Assessment of the progress made in implementing the 2003 recommendations of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Strasbourg, 16 May 2007. 77 Discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity in Europe, 2nd edition, Council of Europe, September 2011. 78 LGBT Survey 2012, European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. 79 EuroPride 2015: Latvia turning its face towards equality, ILGA Europe, 24 June 2015. 80 Professionally speaking: challenges to achieving equality for LGBT people, FRA 2016. 81Latvia: The Status of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights – Submission to the UN Human Rights Council for its Universal Periodic Review of Latvia (11th Session(2011)). ILGA Europe. (ILGA Europe, UPR 2011); Anhelita Kamenska, Civil and Political Rights, How democratic is Latvia? Audit of Democracy 2005-2014, Advanced Social and Political Research Institute, Riga 2014. 82 Article 91, the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia. 83 See Legal Study on Homophobia and Discrimination on Grounds of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity. Latvia January 2014 Update, Authors: Anhelita Kamenska, Kristīne Laganovska. Background document commissioned by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). 76 20