Rainbow House responds to Commission's penalties on Poland

Rainbow House responds to Commission's penalties on Poland
Credit: Belga

Brussels Rainbow House, an umbrella organization for various local LGBTQ+ organisations, responded to the European Commission's recent actions against Poland's anti-LGBTQ+ legislation on Monday.

When asked about the Commission’s recent request to impose financial penalties against Poland, Rainbow House General Coordinator Jean-François Cannoot responded, “We believe it is essential that basic rights are respected and that there are mechanisms in place to ensure that these rights are respected.”

“Repression alone is not enough,” Cannoot continued in correspondence with The Brussels Times, “Awareness-raising and education are also fundamental and require support for the various communities under threat.”

This follows the Commission’s recent request to penalise Poland for its failure to comply with EU standards concerning judicial independence.

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To this point, the Commission has continually claimed that Poland has violated these policies but has been unable to stop it from doing so. As Euronews reports, multiple local authorities and regions have voted to remain "LGBT-free zones" due to the controversy of gay rights in a conservative country which is predominantly Catholic.

Furthermore, several Polish authorities have stated they do not have anything against the LGBTQ+ community but oppose its "ideologies" as threats to Christian values. With the implementation of these zones, officials aim to ban the promotion of minority sexual identities, particularly in academic environments.

On September 7, however, it asked the European Court of Justice to impose financial penalties on Poland and decided to send Poland a formal letter of notice for its lack of compliance.

According to the Commission, this case may be brought before the European Court of Justice once more if Poland continues to contravene EU standards.


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