Equality Commission Calls For Homophobia To Be Challenged

"Nine years since the first anti-discrimination law on sexual orientation was introduced in Northern Ireland, homophobic attitudes and discrimination still have a daily impact on the lives of too many gay and lesbian people," the Chief Commissioner of the Equality Commission Michael Wardlow said today.

Mr Wardlow, speaking on the International Day of Anti-Homophobia, said that the law in Northern Ireland highlights society's rejection of the prejudice and hostility which leads to discrimination, harassment and physical attacks on people because of their sexual orientation.

"The Equality Commission is determined to ensure that every person can avail of legal protection against such activities. In the past year our legal advice team has received 82 enquiries from people who were concerned about their rights under equality laws outlawing discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation. Within those statistics, it is notable that there was a particular increase – more than five times as many - in the number of enquiries received from people subjected to harassment because of their sexual orientation when seeking to access goods and services. We know that such instances of homophobic abuse are generally under-reported and that, unfortunately, the number of complaints we receive does not reflect the actual prevalence of such behaviour."

(CD)