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Procedure : 2018/2878(RSP)
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Texts tabled :

O-000132/2018 (B8-0007/2019)

Debates :

PV 12/02/2019 - 23
CRE 12/02/2019 - 23

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Verbatim report of proceedings
Tuesday, 12 February 2019 - Strasbourg Revised edition

23. The rights of intersex people (debate)
Video of the speeches
Minutes
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  President. – The next item is the joint debate on

– the oral question to the Commission on the rights of intersex people, tabled by Claude Moraes, on behalf of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (O-000132/2018 – B8—0007/2019) (2018/2878(RSP))

– the oral question to the Commission on the rights of intersex people, tabled by Claude Moraes, on behalf of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (O-000133/2018 – B8—0008/2019) (2018/2878(RSP)

– the oral question to the Commission on the future of the LGBTI List of Actions (2019-2023) tabled by Malin Björk on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group, Tanja Fajon and Daniele Viotti, on behalf of the S&D Group, Sophia in 't Veld, on behalf of the ALDE Group, Roberta Metsola and Sirpa Pietikäinen, on behalf of the PPE Group and Terry Reintke, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group (O-000006/2019 - B8—0014/2019) (2018/2878(RSP).

 
  
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  Claude Moraes, author. – Madam President, we are now moving to the question of discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people and it’s important that this item has been placed on the agenda today. I know that many people today in the Chamber care about this issue, and I particularly thank Parliament’s LGBTI Intergroup for ensuring that this has been brought to the agenda.

In particular, I want to raise one aspect of the fight against discrimination against LGBTI people, and that is to highlight the fact that this is the first time a specific aspect of this issue is being debated in this Parliament – having been debated in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and, indeed, in the UN. This will be the first time that the daily discrimination faced by intersex people – the ‘I’ in LGBTI – has been discussed here in the European Parliament. And that is significant and important.

So, to focus on the oral question and resolution put forward by the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, which touches upon this issue not often discussed but extremely important. Why important? If we are going to measure our values in the European Union by the way particular communities are treated and their vulnerability, then clearly the position faced by intersex people, not only in the European Union but also worldwide, is of significance. And it’s worth mentioning that human rights violations experienced by this community are significant, and we need to put them on the agenda today.

Intersex people face violation of their bodily integrity. Very often intersex is still considered as a disease, as something wrong, to be fixed, and ‘normalising’ surgery is often applied. Medical treatments are carried out on intersex newborns in at least 21 EU Member States. Secondly, throughout their lives, intersex people are victims of stigma, verbal discrimination including in the workplace, harassment, and lack of adequate medical care, legal recognition and access to justice, and of the invisibility of their bodies in our society. However, there is still no legal protection against discrimination based on such sex characteristics: no legal recognition of intersex people.

So today, we call on the Council and the Commission to ensure a de-pathologisation of intersex people and to prohibit unnecessary sex-normalising treatment and surgery. We know that in some Member States there has been progress, but in too many Member States there is insufficient progress.

We ask for gender and sex characteristics to be recognised as a ground of discrimination. We ask for provision of adequate, impartial psychosocial counselling; for the mainstreaming of flexible birth registration; and for legal gender-recognition procedures to be facilitated.

The key questions we’re asking of the Commission are very important ones. Today, almost 10 years on – and while I know the Commissioner is strongly committed to this, as she said in the LIBE Committee – we still do not have our cross-cutting anti-discrimination directive. So the base, which I know the Commissioner and the Members here are committed to, has not been put in place. And really the question is: what can we do to advance this anti-discrimination directive in a wider way?

Secondly, specifically with the intersex community, what are we doing to ensure that sex characteristics as a ground of discrimination, hate crime and hate speech are recognised?

Today, in the EU, only Malta and Portugal have outlawed medically unnecessary treatments on intersex children, and only Malta, Portugal and Greece have explicitly recognised sex characteristics as a ground of discrimination, hate crime and hate speech. It is intolerable that people in Europe continue to be discriminated against because of who they love, the body they are born with, and their personal sense of their gender. It is important today that we have put this on the agenda. And, I repeat, if we are to have values across the EU that we can respect, then they must entail caring for the most vulnerable minorities in our society; facing up to such discrimination; and showing that we are not afraid to stand up against it.

For that reason, I am very proud that this oral question and resolution are being presented to you today.

 
  
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  Anna Maria Corazza Bildt, author. – Madam President, in ‘LGBTI’, what does the ‘I’ stand for? It stands for intersex people, not for ideology. Behind that unknown letter, there are people who suffer from discrimination and violence, and have suffered since childhood. I’m proud to be the author for the PPE Group of what is the first-ever resolution on the human rights of intersex people – the forgotten letter ‘I’.

Children are being subjected, without informed consent, to medical treatment and surgical operations which damage their health and reproductive rights. Think! What if it was your child?

In this time of populism on both sides of the Atlantic, the human rights agenda is under attack. We are seeing a normalisation of sexist and homophobic rhetoric, in which the LGBTI community has become an easy target of the extreme right. Discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity should not have any place in our modern societies. I want to agree with you, Mr Moraes, that the anti—discrimination directive, on which I am the shadow rapporteur for the PPE Group, should move forward. It’s unacceptable that it has been blocked for years in the Council.

Too often, LGBTI people are victims of bullying, hate speech, homophobia, stereotypes and stigmatisation, at school and online. The European Union must stand up for open societies and take the lead in respecting fundamental rights globally, living up to our core values of tolerance, equality and diversity. While legislation, including on access to justice, is a necessary step, it’s not enough. We have to join forces to change the rhetoric and the attitudes, and, with our joint resolution, we should secure the future of the LGBTI List of Actions that expires now.

So, we are calling on you, Commissioner, and on the Commission to adopt a clear strategy and an action plan to make sure that we will promote and protect LGBTI people in Europe and beyond, recognising that LGBTI rights are human rights.

 
  
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  Malin Björk, författare. – Fru talman! Hbtq-personer utsätts för diskriminering, för hatbrott, för hot. Hbtq-personers familjer erkänns inte – ingen fri rörlighet här, minsann. Transpersoner och intersexpersoner utsätts för kränkande ingrepp och till och med könsstympning. Hbtq-flyktingar låser man in och deporterar – år 2019 i Europa. I vissa länder har det gått framåt med kamp och solidaritet mellan olika grupper, men i andra länder går det åt helt fel håll. Nationalister och konservativa attackerar våra rättigheter. De organiserar sig och menar att vi är onaturliga. Vi är freaks, vi är oönskade.

Det får vara slut. Det är dags att slå tillbaka och vi tänker göra det tillsammans med andra rörelser som vill se ett bättre Europa och en mer mänsklig och jämlik framtid – queer solidaritet, mina vänner – flyktingsolidaritetsrörelser, kvinnorörelser, funktionsrättsrörelser och många andra som vill se en medmänsklig och jämlik framtid. Vi kräver politisk aktion. Tänk att ministrarna inte ens kunde enas om några små rader om hbtq-rättigheter, för då sa Orbán och Polen och andra nej.

Här har vi kollegor lyckats enas om en strategi för intersexpersoners rättigheter. Vi flyttar fram positionerna. Vi kräver också en övergripande strategi för hbtq-rättigheter mot diskriminering, en ny diskrimineringslagstiftning. Vi behöver sätta stopp för hatbrott och hot mot hbtq-personer. Vi behöver stötta alla hbtq-kids runt om i Europa. Vi behöver stå upp för regnbågsfamiljerna.

Vi kommer inte att försvinna. Själv tänkte jag komma tillbaka hit som EU-parlamentariker efter valet i maj och då ska det bli politisk verkstad, må ni tro. Då tänker vi flytta fram positionerna. För våra kroppar, våra liv, våra drömmar, våra begär är inte bara en verklighet, utan de är också en chans för alla som vill bryta mot könskonservativa uppfattningar för att se storheten i vad det innebär att vara människa med olika familjer, olika drömmar, olika liv och olika kroppar. Ta den chansen.

 
  
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  Daniele Viotti, autore. – Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, signora Commissario, mi permetta di dire intanto una parola iniziale sul fatto che queste due interrogazioni, che chiuderanno probabilmente i lavori di questa legislatura, sono anche il completamento di un lavoro fatto con le tante colleghe e i tanti colleghi all'interno dell'intergruppo LGBTI del Parlamento europeo, e quindi questo mi riempie di orgoglio.

Attraverso questa risoluzione, Presidente, il Parlamento europeo intende invitare la Commissione a garantire che i diritti delle persone LGBTI rappresentino un'assoluta priorità nel programma di lavoro dal 2019 al 2024. È infatti cruciale assicurare una strategia di follow-up comprensiva e forte dell'elenco di azioni per migliorare ulteriormente la protezione dei diritti delle persone lesbiche, gay, bisessuali, transessuali e intersessuali, e promuovere l'uguaglianza.

Ad oggi i diritti delle persone LGBTI non sono tutelati in modo uniforme in tutta Europa. L'Unione europea non dispone, purtroppo, ancora di una protezione globale contro la discriminazione basata sull'identità di genere, sull'orientamento sessuale o sulle caratteristiche sessuali. Le unioni omosessuali non sono riconosciute ancora in tutti gli Stati membri, la sterilizzazione è un requisito per il riconoscimento giuridico del genere in otto Stati membri, e 18 Stati membri richiedono una diagnosi di salute mentale. In 21 Stati membri i bambini intersessuali vengono sottoposti a interventi di "normalizzazione sessuale".

Nel frattempo l'elenco delle azioni rimane limitato in termini di priorità e di impegno, e le risposte innovative dell'Unione europea, come il pilastro dei diritti sociali, non vengono integrate. Solamente ridando credibilità a questo documento programmatico, tutelando i diritti delle persone intersessuali, proteggendo i cittadini europei da ogni forma di discriminazione attraverso la direttiva orizzontale antidiscriminazione, bloccata ormai da dieci anni, come è già stato detto, e prendendo misure concrete per garantire la libertà di movimento delle famiglie, comprese le famiglie LGBTI, daremo conformemente risposta alle richieste della Corte di giustizia. Questa è una lotta contro la transfobia, l'omofobia, che si cura anche attraverso la cultura...

(Il Presidente toglie la parola all'oratore)

 
  
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  Sophia in ’t Veld, author. – Madam President, I will not repeat what has been said by all my colleagues because I think we are all on the same wavelength. I would just like to make a couple of remarks about what the EU institutions are doing.

First of all, like my colleagues, I’m pleased and proud that we have our very first resolution on intersex people on the agenda. I think that is a strong political signal. At the same time, we’re also looking at the resolution on the LGBTI list of actions that was adopted by the Commission at the start of its term of office. In my view, these two resolutions should be a kind of legacy to the next European Parliament, and also to the next Commission, and a call for stronger action – even stronger action than has been taken in the past five years – because I think that a lot still needs to be done.

A lot has been achieved, but if I look at the Council, for example, I note that at one of the last Council meetings the Member States couldn’t even agree on a joint statement on LGBTI rights. Hello! We’re still in the Middle Ages. Some countries are blocking it. I also note, like other colleagues, that the anti-discrimination directive has been blocked for more than 10 years now.

But I note, too, if I look at our own House, that the President of our House, Mr Tajani, is one of the keynote speakers at the World Congress of Families, which is probably one of the most homophobic, anti-choice events that you will find in the world. One of the co—organisers is an organisation called CitizenGO, which is also one of the champions of the so-called Nashville Declaration, which is the most homophobic declaration in the world. It has also been signed by some people in this House. I do not feel represented by Mr Tajani showing up at such an event and then arguing here for LGBTI rights. That is hypocrisy if ever I have seen it.

 
  
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  Terry Reintke, author. – Madam President, the European Parliament strongly condemns sex-normalising treatments and surgery. That is a very simple yet very meaningful sentence – and sentences that change history are often not complicated but rather simple.

Tomorrow this House will have the chance to make history when we vote for the first intersex resolution here in this Parliament. And yes, we will not be able to make up for all the suffering that the binary-gender ideology has wrought in so many people’s lives: the involuntary treatments, the forced sterilisation and surgical procedures, the stigmatisation and the discrimination. But we can say tomorrow, loud and clear, that we will fight for a future in which the rights of intersex people will be upheld in this Union.

This message is long overdue, but it comes at a very crucial moment because the rights of all LGBTI people are currently under attack. After decades of progress, we are in danger of going backwards. To prevent that from happening, the EU must adopt a strategy on how to prevent it. A new list of measures on LGBTI rights is the least that the Commission can do in order to stand firm with those who are fighting to love and to live as they want to.

The specific measures that we want the Commission to take are: to unblock the cross-cutting equality directive proposal in the Council; to make LGBTI rights a priority, including in the forthcoming work programme; to follow up on the Coleman case to enable freedom of movement for LGBTI citizens of the European Union; and to ensure that all possible measures are taken to fight discrimination against LGBTI people throughout the European Union. We have to do this for European citizens.

 
  
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  George Ciamba, President-in-Office of the Council. – Madam President, I would like to thank the European Parliament for the opportunity to discuss such an important subject here today. I will focus particularly on the rights of intersex people, which should be protected in all Member States and which are the subject of one of your questions to the Council.

I would like to begin by stating very clearly that violence and discrimination have no place in European society. We should not forget that Romania’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union has as one of its priorities combating discrimination of any kind. The principles and values enshrined in the EU Treaties, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and EU legislation are not up for negotiation or bargaining.

In Europe, the commitment to decency, tolerance and equal treatment is the very foundation of the idea of a just society. This is a source of pride for Europeans, and for good reason: our society is becoming more inclusive and diverse than ever before. Together, we have taken steps to guarantee equal treatment for women, ethnic minorities, sexual minorities, persons with disabilities, religious minorities and citizens of all ages. And we continue to work on that. I believe that all three EU institutions fundamentally agree on the direction of the journey – towards even greater emancipation and tolerance.

I am proud to say that the Council has already adopted legislation that clearly prohibits discrimination on the grounds listed in Article 19 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, but, as you well know, the anti-discrimination law book remains incomplete. We have better protection, at EU level in respect of discrimination on some grounds rather than others. As many of you have often reminded us, the Council has not yet exhausted its legal capabilities in that regard.

I would like now to turn to the specific issue of violence and discrimination against intersex people. For, indeed, you speak of real suffering in the questions you have put to the Council and the Commission today. I am proud to point out that, in June 2016, the Council responded positively to the Commission’s list of actions to advance LGBTI equality. It was the first time that the Council had adopted a declaration devoted to the advancement of equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons. So it was a historic moment.

In its conclusions the Council invited the Commission to promote the measures outlined in this list of actions and to report on a regular basis on the progress achieved. The Council also invited the Member States to take their own actions to combat discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity. It is, of course, the responsibility of the Member States to hear that call.

Honourable Members, the advancement of equal treatment is a joint effort to which we all must contribute. When it comes to cooperation at EU level, the Commission’s list of actions, including the exchange of good practice, is to be welcomed. The Commission has also undertaken a campaign of awareness raising. The Fundamental Rights Agency is also making important contributions by mapping out the situation of intersex people, including the problems they face in terms of birth registration as well as the matter of non-necessary surgery – which you mentioned – and the closely related problem of informed consent. This is, first and foremost, a question of medical ethics, for which the Member States are responsible and accountable.

The issue of birth registration is also a national matter. Indeed, when it comes to the more specific issues identified in your question, it is the Member States that have the key competences. However, this does not mean there is no European dimension or solution. Of course there is.

As you know, the category of intersex is not included on the list of prohibited discrimination grounds in the Treaties, but I believe it is obvious that extending the right to equal treatment for intersex people is entirely within the spirit of our common European values and our common campaign for inclusiveness. As we pursue, improve and defend our values, we all benefit from constructive exchanges, including the one we are holding here today and the vote you will have tomorrow.

Thank you for your attention. I would like to remind you, as I said at the beginning, that the Romanian Presidency of the Council has as one of its priorities the fight against discrimination, and this is one of the opportunities that we are proud to have.

 
  
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  Věra Jourová, Member of the Commission. – Madam President, let me first start by thanking Parliament for tabling this debate on the discrimination against LGBTI people. The Commission is committed to the advancement of equality of LGBTI people and welcomes that Parliament has ensured, through the report, that these issues, and particularly the situation of intersex persons, are kept high on the political radar screen.

It is exactly for this reason that we published a list of actions to advance LGBTI equality, in December 2015. In the coming months we will present a third report on the implementation of the list of actions. I will come back to this list of actions at the end of this opening remark.

Let me say a few words on the problems related to intersex people who, as we all know and as you mentioned many times, are having serious problems because they do not fit into the main gender categories – female and male. The unnecessary surgical operations and treatments that intersex children may undergo are especially worrying since they are not able to give their fully informed consent due to their young age.

However, according to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the definition of health policies and the organisation and delivery of health services, fall under the responsibility of Member States. The Commission respects the principle of subsidiarity in the area of ethical accountability for the surgical treatment that intersex young people and children undergo. The possibility to provide a third gender option at birth or in public documents are also competences of the Member States.

Regarding transgender people, Member States have to ensure that the relevant laws are applied in accordance with the latest international human rights standards. The European Court of Human Rights ruled that the condition of compulsory sterilising surgery or treatment for legal gender recognition violated Article 8 of the Convention.

So I will now come back to our list of actions which aim to advance LGBTI rights. Within the framework, or based on this list of actions, the Commission has carried out several activities to raise awareness of the difficulties that transgender and intersex people experience. It recently published a new report on trans and intersex equality rights in Europe.

We also financially support civil society organisations whose work also includes promoting transgender and intersex equality. We have released awareness raising videos and we organised a good practice exchange between the Member States on these topics.

Upon the request of Parliament, the pilot project Health4LGBTI was carried out, which also focused on the specific health issues transgender and intersex people face.

As part of the list of actions, the Commission also monitors and enforces existing rights of LGBTI people under the Free Movement Directive. The Commission welcomes the recent ruling by the Court in the Coman case and the Commission will monitor Member States’ compliance with the EU free movement acquis as regards issues related to sexual orientation.

The Commission will continue to implement the list of actions to advance LGBTI rights in 2019. This year a new Eurobarometer on discrimination, including relevant questions for LGBTI equality, and the second Fundamental Rights Agency LGBTI survey will take place. These surveys will provide us with important data that will help us to target our future actions. This year is the year of evaluation and preparatory works for the future, updated LGBTI list of actions which should be adopted by the newly established Commission and endorsed by Parliament.

The Commission is committed to successfully and positively handing over its work to advance LGBTI equality to the next Commission, which will have to decide how it will continue these policies. But I will strongly recommend that my successor involve the European Parliament and civil society organisations in the design of its future LGBTI list of actions, as also suggested in the motion we are debating today.

I want also to react to the debate we have heard up to now. The Commission continues to promote the adoption of the horizontal equal treatment directive. As you rightly pointed out, I will call it a shameful situation that it has been blocked for years in the Council. You are aware that this piece of legislation requires unanimous adoption. That’s why we need to have all the Member States on board.

When I indicated that after so many years of having this blocked, the Treaty offers the option of enhanced cooperation, you will not be surprised that the Member States – at least in the reactions I got in the Council meetings, but also in many bilateral meetings where I raised this issue – confirmed that they need more time and they do not want us to go for the enhanced cooperation, because this is about fundamental rights. So I just convey this information to you and I will continue to keep pushing because we regularly discuss the prospects of this directive, which I would like to see in a positive way.

My last comment: you also raised the issue of hate speech online and hate speech in general. The Commission is continuing very intensive work, together with the IT sector, to achieve a radical decrease in hate speech online and a decrease in hate speech from the social networks. We are reasonably successful. The IT sector is doing what it committed itself to do in the Code of Conduct and we will continue to do this exercise in the future until the end of my mandate.

 
  
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  José Inácio Faria, em nome do Grupo PPE. – Senhora Presidente, Senhora Comissária, depois do movimento Me Too milhares de pessoas LGBTI partilharam no Twitter histórias de discriminação e de bullying homofóbico sob o hashtag MeQueer, muitas delas são nossos concidadãos europeus.

Em pleno século XXI a União Europeia carece ainda de uma proteção abrangente contra a discriminação em razão da identidade de género, da orientação sexual e das características sexuais. As pessoas LGBTI continuam excluídas de uma verdadeira liberdade de circulação e das estratégias de inclusão social da União, como o pilar europeu dos direitos sociais, e persistem assimetrias nos diferentes Estados-Membros quanto à proteção dos seus direitos civis e ao acesso a serviços públicos fundamentais, como a educação, a saúde ou a segurança social.

Perante este cenário, Senhora Comissária, a Comissão tem de elaborar uma estratégia inclusiva a favor das pessoas LGBTI que inclua a promoção do reconhecimento civil das pessoas intersexo, englobe a implementação de projetos de prevenção da violência homofóbica e transfóbica nos sistemas educacionais dos Estados-Membros e garanta também a necessária proteção para os requerentes de asilo LGBTI.

 
  
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  Julie Ward, on behalf of the S&D Group. – Madam President, when we talk about LGBT people, intersex people are often forgotten about. They have been dehumanised for centuries and discriminated against because of their bodies. This been presented as a health issue, when in fact there is nothing unhealthy about being intersex. The forced mutilations practiced on intersex children are an abomination. It is truly unacceptable that in 2019 such awful violations of bodily autonomy are still taking place in the EU.

The fact that we are so prone forcibly and permanently to change the bodies of children who cannot give consent shows how far we are willing to go to reinforce ridiculous gender binary. Intersex people are proof that there is more to humanity than men on one side and women on the other side. Intersex people are proof that categorising people on the basis of their sexual features is simply narrow minded and does not reflect reality. I will stand with all intersex people, especially children, and I will tell them: ‘You are not alone.’

 
  
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  Helga Stevens, namens de ECR-Fractie. – Voorzitter, collega's, zelfs nu zijn LGBTI—rechten niet gegarandeerd in de EU. Er bestaan grote verschillen tussen de EU—lidstaten. Er is nog steeds geen allesomvattende bescherming tegen discriminatie op basis van genderidentiteit, seksuele oriëntatie of geslachtskenmerken. Veel EU—landen erkennen geen huwelijken die werden gesloten tussen twee mannen of twee vrouwen, wat in België wel mogelijk is. Voorafgaande sterilisatie is in acht lidstaten nog steeds een voorwaarde om juridisch van geslacht te mogen veranderen, terwijl 18 lidstaten een psychologisch onderzoek eisen. In 21 lidstaten wordt "geslachtsnormaliseringschirurgie" uitgevoerd bij intersekskinderen. Het is maar de vraag of dit strookt met het Europees Handvest van de grondrechten.

Ik steun het verzoek aan de Commissie om ervoor te zorgen dat onder andere LGBTI—rechten een prioriteit zijn in haar werkprogramma voor 2019—2024, en om de samenwerking tussen de verschillende DG's te versterken, met als doel LGBTI—rechten beter te mainstreamen, zoals op het vlak van onderwijs en gezondheid. Ook zou de Commissie een nieuw strategisch document moeten goedkeuren om de gelijkheid van LGBTI—mensen te bevorderen.

Het is ook van belang dat Europa doorgaat met bewustmakingscampagnes over LGBTI—mensen en hun gezinnen. Daarnaast moet Europa ook de vrijheid van verkeer garanderen voor alle gezinnen, inclusief regenboogfamilies, in de hele EU, gezien de recente zaak—Coman bij het Europees Hof van Justitie.

Kortom, het is onaanvaardbaar dat LGBTI—mensen in veel EU—landen nog steeds als tweederangsburgers worden behandeld.

 
  
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  Cornelia Ernst, im Namen der GUE/NGL-Fraktion. – Frau Präsidentin! Heute haben wir nun zum ersten Mal eine Entschließung zu den Rechten von intersexuellen Menschen auf dem Tisch. Das wurde wirklich Zeit, denn die Tabuisierung dieses Themas erleichtert es nach wie vor, Menschen in einen dunklen Raum der Rechtlosigkeit zu sperren. Und was für sie angeblich richtig ist, bestimmen dann eben andere, die glauben, dass das Falsche und die Abweichung ausgemerzt werden muss, indem schon Säuglingen operativ ein Geschlecht verpasst wird.

Was auch immer wir heute erzählen – bitte, lassen Sie uns über eine Sache Einigkeit herstellen: Wir sollten uns mit aller Kraft dafür einsetzen, dass solche Operationen, solche medizinischen Behandlungen bei Säuglingen verboten werden, und zwar überall, weil sie furchtbare Folgen haben können und weil sie mitnichten medizinisch notwendig sind. Intersexuelle sind einfach keine Kranken, die man heilen müsste, sondern normale Leute, die über sich selbst entscheiden wollen und Respekt genießen möchten. Alles zu tun, damit niemand Angst haben muss, verlacht, bevormundet, bedroht zu werden und sich selbst in Zweifel zu setzen – ich denke, darum geht es – deshalb muss Diskriminierung wegen fehlender Anerkennung von Intersexualität auch strafrechtlich verfolgt werden, brauchen wir Unterstützungsaktionen, Öffentlichkeit, positive Öffentlichkeit und die Normalisierung der Debatte –, darum, ob es um geeignete Geschlechtsbezeichnungen auf Ausweisdokumenten geht, oder darum, endlich zu begreifen, dass das menschliche Leben keine Einbahnstraße ist.

 
  
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  Juan Fernando López Aguilar (S&D). – Señora presidenta, comisaria Jourová, una pregunta oral es un instrumento de control sobre la Comisión que incita a la Comisión a actuar a partir de la Resolución que votaremos el jueves.

He participado en todos los debates que tienen que ver con la discriminación que sufre la ciudadanía europea en sus derechos fundamentales, y particularmente las personas y colectivos más vulnerables. Es el caso de las personas que han sido discriminadas, u objeto de abuso, e incluso de criminalización, por su orientación sexual. En función de a quién deciden amar. El colectivo LGTBI, el colectivo transexual y las personas intersexuales también.

Por ello, creo que es importante que fijemos la vista en las mejores prácticas de aquellos Estados miembros que se distinguen por tener una visión, en primer lugar, que no trata la intersexualidad o la transexualidad o la orientación sexual como una patología, pero que, además, no impone un género forzado a las personas transexuales a través de prácticas médicas, quirúrgicas o farmacológicas.

Recuerdo el informe Lunacek, que votamos en 2014. Propone una visión global de los derechos de las personas en función de su orientación sexual, de transexuales e intersexuales. Este es el camino que le invitamos a seguir.

 
  
 

Catch-the-eye procedure

 
  
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  Eleonora Forenza (GUE/NGL). – Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, considero anche io molto importante, come è già stato detto, che ci sia questa discussione, una discussione congiunta che riguarda i diritti delle persone LGBTI, e la risoluzione sui diritti delle persone intersessuali. Come ricordava il collega Viotti, credo che questa discussione sia anche il frutto di quanto è stato fatto dall'intergruppo LGBTI a cui sono felice di aver potuto contribuire. Così come sono felice che il movimento femminista si autodefinisca sempre più movimento transfemminista esattamente perché ritiene appunto indisgiungibili la liberazione delle donne e la liberazione delle persone LGBTI. Credo che, in particolare, come sottolineava la collega Ernst, sia da condannare ogni forma di intervento chirurgico che voglia riportare a un binarismo di genere i bambini intersessuali. Quindi sono davvero molto contenta di questa discussione.

 
  
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  Dobromir Sośnierz (NI). – Pani Przewodnicząca! Nie ma absolutnie żadnego powodu, żeby w Unii Europejskiej martwić się o prawa osób z dysfunkcjami seksualności tzw. LGBT i QXYZ i tam tak dalej. Już w tej chwili jest to grupa, której poświęcamy nadmiernie dużo uwagi, zwłaszcza w zestawieniu z jej znaczeniem w społeczeństwie, i ciesząca się nawet pewnymi przywilejami. Bo niedawno w Wielkiej Brytanii doszło do tego, na przykład, że policja napadła w domu i aresztowała kobietę tylko dlatego, że w internecie nazwała facetem, no faceta, który wcześniej wyciął sobie klejnoty i zmienił płeć w papierach. Jeśli ktoś myśli, że wycinając sobie to i przeżywając coś innego, zmienia płeć, no to oczywiście ma prawo tak myśleć, ale ktoś inny z drugiej strony ma prawo myśleć coś innego. I ma prawo takie poglądy wyrażać w sieci i nie tylko. A to, co próbujecie robić, to jest zastraszanie ludzi. To co próbuje robić rządząca Unią Europejską obyczajowa lewica, to jest cenzura, tłumienie siłą krytyki i terroryzowanie społeczeństwa.

 
  
 

(End of catch-the-eye procedure)

 
  
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  Věra Jourová, Member of the Commission. – Madam President, honourable Members, I spoke for too long earlier, so I will be brief now. I want to thank you for the debate. Parliament has again shown very strong commitment and I will try to do the same: to express my preparedness to work on our next steps on this important agenda.

One concrete thing that we should do together with the LGBTI Intergroup is to carry out some assessment of how the List of Actions worked: what are the achievements, and what things should be changed in the future LGBTI action plan. We will have the new data from Eurobarometer, and it will be important that we meet and that we work together. So, this is my invitation, and I’m sure this will be an important event, where we can work together on this issue.

 
  
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  George Ciamba, President-in-Office of the Council. – Madam President, thank you so much and thank you once more for this exchange. I think it has shown how much work remains to be done. At the same time, I think we can be proud of the forward strides we have taken in this field. As I recalled earlier, the Council reacted positively to the Commission’s List of Actions in support of the whole LGBTI community.

I look forward to its further implementation. When it comes to fighting discrimination and violence, the fine words of our treaties and our declarations and our political debates are quite clear. Europe is on the side of progress, tolerance and light. It is our responsibility as politicians to turn words into action.

 
  
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  President. – The debate is closed.

The vote will take place on Thursday, 14 February 2019.

 
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