LGBTQIA+ too often discriminated against in Switzerland according to Amnesty

Amnesty and several organizations defending the rights of LGBTQIA+ people published two new surveys on Tuesday morning. The first shows that discriminatory acts against the community are common. The second notes that Swiss society is rather open on these issues, but that “prejudices and intolerance persist in certain parts of society”.

For example, around 10% of LGBTQIA+ people say they have had to deal with offensive or threatening emails or messages during the last twelve months. Personal threats of violence also concern more than 15% of respondents*. These figures show that reported acts of discrimination are more numerous in Switzerland than in the European Union, we read in the document.

* In a previous publication, the figures in the graph below were inverted and it was falsely indicated in this article that 80% of respondents had suffered threats. This is an unintentional error. The editorial team of “20 minutes” apologizes for this.

“Shockingly, around one in three people have experienced physical or sexual assault in the last five years – with most of these incidents never reported, the number of unreported cases is high,” says Marc Schmid from Queeramnesty. The second opinion survey reveals that the majority of the Swiss population has sympathy and understanding for homosexuals, lesbians and bisexual people. But these decrease for trans or intersex people.

Men, older people, those who identify as right-wing or with religious beliefs tend to be less interested in the concerns and challenges of LGBTQIA+ people and show rejecting attitudes according to the results. Urgent measures to protect this community are requested (read below). “Attacks against LGBTQIA+ people must be systematically prosecuted criminally and the perpetrators held responsible,” believes Frédéric Mader of the Transgender Network Switzerland.

The organizations have issued a catalog of demands to better protect LGBTQIA+ people in Switzerland. In particular, there is talk of an extension of the anti-discrimination criminal standard which does not currently take into account trans people and those presenting variations of sexual characteristics. The rapid implementation of a national plan against hate crimes targeting LGBTQIA+ people is also required. The associations are also calling for more awareness campaigns and the development of advice centers and contact points.

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