LGBT people in Albania are unhappy

Index places Albania 94th out of 127 countries

19 May 2015 – While the media publish the few public events as well as legal and social reforms the reality of LGBTI people in Albania continues to be difficult and far from ideal. Gay, bisexual and trans people were asked by the social portal Planet Romeo three basic questions: i) how do gay men feel about society’s view on homosexuality ii) how do gay men experience the way they are treated by other people and iii) how satisfied are gay men with their lives and do they accept themselves?

GBT people from 127 countries answered the survey. While from Albania a total of 66 people answered.

On top of the list were 1) Iceland, 2) Norway 3) Denmark and 4) Sweden. Albania meanwhile is ranked 94^th with very low levels of satisfaction. Among those the worst perception is related to how homosexuality is perceived in society. Along with Albania are countries such as Montenegro, Moldova, Jordan, Georgia etc.

Among Western Balkan countries Croatia was best placed (59) while Kosovo the least (116). The situation on the latter seems to be very alarming for the LGBT community. Along with  Kosovo are enlisted countries with the worst legislation and human rights record regarding LGBT rights. This is also one of the biggest paradoxes of Kosovo considering that it is considered to have the best legislation in the region.

From the data collected in the index it is revealed that over 13 million GBT people have been kicked out of home, 22 million have not been hired or been fired, 4 million have suffered serious violence in 2014, 7 million people live in heterosexual marriages, 66 million people have never come out to their parents and 41 million people want to leave their place of origin.

While the findings of the survey have been made public and available to all, in its official statement Planet Romeo explains that with regards to Europe the most problematic regions are the Balkans and former Soviet Union countries. One of the major problems seems to be lack of political will to change social perceptions despite scientific findings which reveal that homosexuality is not a disease.

The index found out a strong correlation between a country’s state of democracy and respect for human rights. It seems that Albania makes no exclusion from this “rule”.

Planet Romeo closes its message by saying that “Those who propagate hatred towards minorities attack all human values. Their actions are not a sign of their own superior morality, but rather the desperate behaviour of an autocrat, hungry for popularity. In practice, they deny us fundamental human rights, force millions of us in the 'unhappy closet', beat us, throw us in prison and murder us.”

Link: https://www.planetromeo.com/lgbt/gay-happiness-index/