The European Commission responded last week to the European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) ‘Ban on conversion practices in the EU' by proposing a Commission recommendation instead of introducing an outright ban as requested in the initiative.
Conversion therapy, which was outlawed in Belgium in 2023, attempts to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity.
Methods range from psychotherapy and electroshock therapy to beatings and even "corrective rape". Conversion therapy can take place in religious, medical or sectarian environments and is often carried out by relatives or pseudo-professionals.
This was the second time this year the Commission proposed innovative solutions in response to ECIs in health issues that fall under the competency of the Member States.
Last February, the Commission responded positively to the ECI ‘My Voice, My Choice: For safe and accessible abortion’.
The NGOs behind that campaign realised that it would not be possible to harmonise EU legislation and focused on the creation of a dedicated EU fund for reproductive care.
Instead of establishing a new fund, the Commission decided to grant funding for access to legally available, affordable and safe abortion services and related travel via the European Social Fund (ESF+).
European Citizens’ Initiatives are the EU’s main instrument for participative democracy. To be successful, they must reach at least one million statements of support as well as minimum thresholds in at least seven Member States.
If formally accepted, ECIs must propose legal action in areas where the Commission has competence.
The ECI against conversion practices was only the 13th since 2012 to which the Commission has adopted a formal response.
The ECI was registered in January 2024 and collected over 1.1 million signatures until May 2025. About half of them (580,000 signatures) were collected in France, followed by Spain (162,000 signatures).
The ECI requested the Commission to take action and propose a legal ban on conversion practices targeting LGBTQ+ citizens.
According the both the initiative and the Commission, conversion practices rely on the false idea that LGBTIQ+ people are sick. These harmful interventions can result in long-lasting psychological and physical damage.
A common practice
Conversion practices appear to be relatively common in the EU. The EU's Fundamental Rights Agency reported that 24% of LGBTIQ+ people in the EU have experienced such practices, including physical and sexual violence, verbal abuse and humiliation.
This figure almost doubles for transwomen and men.
A Commission spokesperson told The Brussels Times that eight countries already have a legal ban in place against conversion practices: Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Malta, Cyprus and Greece.
In Belgium, the ban was introduced in 2022. Three more EU countries are reportedly considering a ban (The Netherlands, Austria and Poland).
However, the Commission considered that a ban would not be effective and that a recommendation was expected to meet the substantive objectives of the ECI. Only if the Council were to extend the list of ‘euro-crimes’ would the Commission be able to propose, as a second step, a directive under this new legal basis.
The Commission recommendation is envisaged to recommend Member States to ban conversion practices in their national legal order; protect LGBTIQ+ people and combat conversion practices targeting their sexual orientation or gender identity/expression; and supplement the recommended ban with recommendations for other measures providing, e.g., training for practitioners.
However, the work will take some time. The recommendation will be informed by a structured dialogue with Member States through the Expert Group on LGBTIQ+ equality and good practices from those Member States who have bans already in place.
The work will also build on an ongoing in-depth study on conversion practices, with results expected in early 2027.
Asked how EU Member States will react to a recommendation, Equality Commissioner Hadja Lahbib replied that the responsibility lies at national level.
“A binding directive would have required unanimity. We decided to act in a positive way after years of negotiations,” Lahbib said.
She described the Commission’s decision as a historical act showing its position and far more effective that a legal ban.
Some practices (torture) are already illegal. What will be abolished if the Member States follow the recommendation is harmful psychological harassment, according to Lahbib. “You push young vulnerable people into a nightmare. Psychological violence shouldn’t be underestimated because it sometimes leads to suicide.”
Is it ok for a priest to pray for someone to stop being gay? “I’ll never ban a priest praying to G-d for something he believes in as long as he doesn’t cause harmful practices to young people,” she replied.
