Combating discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity : Council of Europe standards

The Council of Europe works to uphold human rights, the rule of law and pluralist democracy. The Council of Europe's standards and mechanisms seek to promote and ensure respect for the human rights of every individual. These include equal rights and dignity of all human beings, including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons.

The Council of Europe has adopted a number of international legal instruments and standards on combating discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity. They illustrate the underlying message of the Organisation, which is that the Council of Europe's standards of tolerance and non-discrimination apply to all European societies, and discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity is not compatible with these standards.

The publication "Combating discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity" (June 2011) provides an accessible and comprehensive compilation of the standards adopted by the Council of Europe. It should serve as a reference for the governments, international institutions, NGOs, media professionals and to all those who are - or should be - professionally or otherwise involved or interested in protecting and promoting the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons.