3.4 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 110. The Commissioner welcomes the improved policies to protect the freedom of assembly and expression of LGBTI persons, notably in the context of organisation of gay pride events. He urges the Latvian authorities to build on this progress and ensure the protection of LGBTI persons in all areas of life. At the same time, he observes that currently there is an absence of specific polices to address the human rights of LGBTI persons in a comprehensive and systematic manner, and there remain certain gaps in the legal and institutional framework. He encourages the authorities to develop an action plan to comprehensively address the protection needs of LGBTI persons, and invites the authorities to seek relevant expertise through the available cooperation mechanisms with the Council of Europe. 111. Evidence-based research and data collection are important prerequisites for putting in place effective public policies. Therefore, the Commissioner encourages systematic research and disaggregated data collection concerning discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity in all areas of life. In the collection of any sensitive data, the authorities should apply safeguards protecting the right to respect for private life. There is a particular need to raise awareness about the human rights of LGBTI persons in order to increase support for diversity and equal treatment. In that respect, the Commissioner wishes to emphasise the important role that political parties and public figures can play to promote social acceptance of the human rights of LGBTI persons and condemn any practice of stereotyping or denigrating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. 112. The Commissioner recommends that the legal framework on hate speech and hate crime be revised to explicitly include sexual orientation and gender identity among the protected grounds in the relevant sections of Criminal Law in order to ensure effective investigation and accurate qualification of offences targeting LGBTI persons. Transphobic and homophobic bias should be included among the aggravated circumstances under Section 48 of the Criminal Law. The Commissioner would also like to highlight ECRI General Policy Recommendation 15, in particular clause 10, whereby member states are invited to take appropriate and effective action against the use, in a public context, of hate speech which is “intended or can reasonably be expected to incite acts of violence, intimidation, hostility or discrimination against those targeted by it” through the use of the criminal law provided that no other, less restrictive, measure would be effective. He further urges the authorities to build adequate capacity among police, prosecutors and judges to effectively investigate, prosecute and punish all instances of bias-motivated crimes. Moreover, it would be desirable to pursue further efforts to increase the trust of potential complainants in the commitment of law-enforcement bodies to combat such crimes. 113. The Commissioner welcomes the fact that there have been several initiatives to introduce legislation for equal recognition of same-sex couples under domestic law. In light of the case-law of the Strasbourg Court upholding the right of same-sex couples to enjoy equal recognition of their relationship under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as the growing trend in Europe towards recognition of same-sex partnerships, the Commissioner invites the authorities to introduce legislation on registered partnerships. 114. The Commissioner takes note of the amendments to the Education Law regarding “morality in education” and the widespread concerns by civil society organisations that the amendments were triggered by homophobic bias. The Commissioner recalls his opinion expressed in other contexts that children have the right to receive factual information about sexuality and gender diversity. He also recalls the Recommendation CM/Rec(2010)5 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on measures to combat discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity and about the need for objective information with respect to sexual orientation and gender identity in school curricula and educational materials. He calls on the authorities to apply the policy guidelines concerning the above-mentioned amendments in line with the foregoing precepts. Finally, he encourages the Latvian authorities to enhance their cooperation with civil society in the area of human rights of LGBTI persons. 24