Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Croatia have expanded since the turn of the 21st century, especially in the 2010s and 2020s. However, LGBT people still face some legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. The status of same-sex relationships was first formally recognized in 2003 under a law dealing with unregistered cohabitations. As a result of a 2013 referendum, the Constitution of Croatia defines marriage solely as a union between a woman and man, effectively prohibiting same-sex marriage. Since the introduction of the Life Partnership Act in 2014, same-sex couples have effectively enjoyed rights equal to heterosexual married couples in almost all of its aspects, except adoption. In 2022, a final court judgement allowed same-sex adoption under the same conditions as for mixed-sex couples. Same-sex couples in Croatia can also apply for foster care since 2020. Croatian law forbids all discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in all civil and state matters; any such identity is considered a private matter, and such information gathering for any purpose is forbidden as well.
LGBT people in Bulgaria face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex relationships are legal in Bulgaria, but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation has been banned since 2004, with discrimination based on "gender change" being outlawed since 2015. In July 2019, a Bulgarian court recognized a same-sex marriage performed in France in a landmark ruling. For 2020, Bulgaria was ranked 37 of 49 European countries for LGBT rights protection by ILGA-Europe. Like most countries in Central and Eastern Europe, post-Communist Bulgaria holds socially conservative attitudes when it comes to such matters as homosexuality and transgender people.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Serbia face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Serbia, and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is banned in areas such as employment, education, media, and the provision of goods and services, amongst others. Nevertheless, households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Iceland rank among the highest in the world. Icelandic culture is generally tolerant towards homosexuality and non-cisgender individuals, and Reykjavík has a visible LGBT community. Iceland ranked first on the Equaldex Equality Index in 2023, indicating it is one of the safest nations for LGBT people in Europe.
Danish lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights are some of the most extensive in the world. In 2023, ILGA-Europe ranked Denmark as the third most LGBT-supportive country in Europe. Polls consistently show that same-sex marriage support is nearly universal amongst the Danish population.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Cyprus have evolved in recent years, but LGBT people still face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female expressions of same-sex sexual activity were decriminalised in 1998, and civil unions which grant several of the rights and benefits of marriage have been legal since December 2015. Conversion therapy was banned in Cyprus in May 2023. However, adoption rights in Cyprus are reserved for heterosexual couples only.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people (LGBT) in the Philippines face legal challenges not faced by non-LGBT people, with numerous anti-discrimination legislations, bills and laws that are struggling to be passed on a national level to protect LGBT rights nationwide, with some parts of the country only existing on a local government level. LGBT individuals in the Philippines are often faced with disadvantages and difficulties in acquiring equal rights within the country. They also have a higher rate of suicide and suicide ideation compared to their heterosexual counterparts.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Georgia face significant challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Georgia is one of only a few countries in the former Soviet space that directly prohibits discrimination against all LGBT people in legislation, labor-related or otherwise. Since 2012, Georgian law has considered crimes committed on the grounds of one's sexual orientation or gender identity an aggravating factor in prosecution. The legislative ban on discrimination has been enacted as a part of the Government efforts to bring the country closer to the European Union and make the country's human rights record in line with the demands of Georgia's European and Euro-Atlantic integration.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Moldova face legal and social challenges and discrimination not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same rights and benefits as households headed by opposite-sex couples. Same-sex unions are not recognized in the country, so consequently same-sex couples have little to no legal protection. Nevertheless, Moldova bans discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace, and same-sex sexual activity has been legal since 1995.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Slovenia have significantly evolved over time, and are considered among the most advanced of the former communist countries. Slovenia was the first post-communist country to have legalised same-sex marriage, and anti-discrimination laws regarding sexual orientation and gender identity have existed nationwide since 2016.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Nepal have evolved significantly during the 21st century, though barriers to full equality still exist within the nation. In 2007, Nepal repealed the laws against gay sex and introduced several laws which explicitly protected "gender and sexual minorities". The Nepalese Constitution now recognizes LGBT rights as fundamental rights. On 28 June 2023, a single judge bench of Justice Til Prasad Shrestha issued a historic interim order directing the government to make necessary arrangements to "temporarily register" the marriages of "non-traditional couples and sexual minorities". The full bench of the Supreme Court has yet to deliver a final verdict. The first queer marriage of a trans woman and a cisgender man occurred in November 2023. Nepal will be the first least developed country and the first in South Asia to legalize same-sex marriage, and the second in Asia after Taiwan.
The Blue Diamond Society is an LGBT rights organization in Nepal. It was established in 2001 to advocate for change in the existing laws against homosexuality and to advocate for the rights of Nepal's marginalized gay, transgender, and other sexual minority communities. The Blue Diamond Society also aims to educate Nepalese society on proper sexual health, to advocate with local governments for queer minorities, to encourage the artful expression of LGBTQ+ youth, and to document violence against Nepalese queers. Another of its contributions to Nepal's LGBTQ+ communities is to provide care, counseling, and services to victims of HIV/AIDS. The BDS has also recorded various abuses against the community ranging from physical and verbal abuse and discrimination inflicted in workplaces and healthcare facilities.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in North Macedonia face discrimination and some legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity have been legal in North Macedonia since 1996, but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex married couples.
Homosexuality in Yugoslavia was first decriminalized in the Socialist Republics of Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro and the Socialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina in 1977. In other regions anti-LGBT legislation was, to varying degrees, progressively not implemented. The capital city of Belgrade, together with Zagreb and Ljubljana, became some of the first spots of an organized LGBT movement in the Balkans.
The following outline offers an overview and guide to LGBT topics.
Denis Zvizdić is a Bosnian politician who served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2015 to 2019. He has been serving as member of the national House of Representatives since 2019. He also served as Prime Minister of Sarajevo Canton from 2003 to 2006.
Svetlana Đurković, also spelled Svetlana Durkovic, is a Bosnian-American feminist, anthropologist and LGBTIQ human rights activist known as a co-founder of Organization Q, the first LGBTQIA organization in Bosnia and Herzegovina. She has worked to eradicate discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2018, she lives and works in Maryland, and Washington, D.C.
Queer Sarajevo Festival was the first public queer festival in Bosnia and Herzegovina, organized by Organization Q in September 2008 in Sarajevo. The Festival is remembered as the first public coming out of LGBT*IQA persons in BiH. It became the center of interest of Bosnian-Herzegovinian, regional and international public and media after the escalation of violence against Festival participants and journalists on the day of the opening. The Festival was closed for the public two days after its opening, due to counter-reactions of general public, political representatives and as the organizers, journalists and Festival participants had been physically attacked by Islamic religious extremists and nationalists.
The human rights record of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been criticised over a number of years by intergovernmental organisations including the United Nations Human Rights Council, the European Court of Human Rights and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, as well as international and domestic non-governmental organisations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. The government of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been criticised for ethnic and religious discrimination in its treatment of ethnic and religious minorities such as the Romani people and the Jewish people. The government has also been criticised for its treatment of Internally Displaced Persons following the Bosnian War and its failure to provide asylum seekers with resources such as food, shelter and medical assistance. According to BH Novinari, the Bosnian Journalists’ Association, freedom of the media is an issue in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with journalists facing attacks, threats and pressure from government. Human rights non-government organisations have also reported interference in their work from the government. The Bosnian government has been criticised by the European Union for its slow response to domestically prosecute war crimes from the Bosnian War following the closure of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in December 2017.
