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Vigil and expression of solidarity with the Orlando LGBTQ community on Friday

On Sunday we were shocked and deeply sorrowed to learn about the horrific hate crime which took place at the LGBTQ  night club Pulse in Orlando, USA. This act of hate cost the lives of and injured so many members of our community. On Friday 17 June at 17:00 we will come together in memory of the victims of the attack and in solidarity with the Orlando LGBTQ community at the Karhupuisto park in Kallio, Helsinki.

A moment of silence, words of remembrance and music. Participation of Seta – LGBTI rights in Finland, HeSeta, US Embassy and Kaupungin naiset and Out ‘n Loud choirs.

The event is politically and religiously independent and open to everyone.

Organised by Seta – LGBTI Rights in Finland.

More information:

Kerttu Tarjamo
Secretary General
+358 50 309 8108
paasihteeri@seta.fi

Were you a victim of a hate crime? Tell us by April 27th!

We collect data of hate crimes for our advocacy work. Please tell us about a hate crime you, or someone you know have encountered in the year 2015. You will help improve the safety and rights of LGBTI people.

OSCE, the Organization of Security and Co-operation in Europe, has asked NGOs to report hate crime incidents. Seta is also going to use anonymous information of the incidents in its advocacy work. Please send your information by April 27th to toimisto[at]seta.fi.

Enclose the following information:

  • What happened?
  • Date, time and location of the incident
  • Source of information (you, your friend, read from a newspaper…)
  • Victim(s) involved (no names, only gender, age and other relevant information: if the incident is homophobic or transphobic, the victims sexual orientation or gender identity might be relevant)
  • Type of the crime (e.g. assault, abuse, vandalism, incitement to racial or ethnic hatred)
  • Perpetrator(s) (no name, only gender, age and other relevant information)
  • Brief description of incident with bias indicators, i.e. why the incident is a hate crime (e.g. the perpetrator yelled homophopic or racist insults, the crime was against a LGBTI organization…)
  • Status of the case, i.e. has the incident been reported to the police and what has happened since (has preliminary investigation been carried out, have charges been filed, is there a court rule)
  • Response of the local authorities
  • Impact on the victim(s) and the community (e.g. LGBTI community or peer group)

> Read more about OSCE hate crime reporting http://hatecrime.osce.org/

EuroGames 2016 brings international LGBT-athletes to Helsinki

The EuroGames 2016 event in Helsinki and it’s neighbouring cities of Vantaa and Espoo will be held from 29th of June to 2nd of July 2016. The organizing sport club is HOT Helsinki.

HOT Helsinki welcomes all European sport clubs and individual sportsmen and women to participate in the northern most EuroGames so far. We offer you the most professional sport events as well as interesting and memorable cultural and human rights events during the games.

There will be at least 14 different sports in Helsinki EuroGames 2016: badminton, basketball, bowling, bridge, dancing, floorball, football, golf, squash, swimming, tennis, track and field & cross-country running and volleyball. Non-competitive sporting events are as well offered, for example yoga. We are expecting all together 3 000 participants and 2 000 other visitors from all over the world to arrive in Helsinki. Being the neighbouring country and having good transport connections to Russia and the Baltic countries we expect many participants from there.

More information  eurogameshelsinki.org

Also EuroGamesHelsinki is in  Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Youtube

 

Have you encountered hate speech and harassment? Answer questionnaire by 11th of November!

If you are a member of a minority group (people whose mother tongue is not Finnish, foreign citizens or persons with immigrant backgrounds, Finnish Roma, Samis, disabled people, members of sexual and gender minorities, and members of religious minority groups) and if you have personally experienced harassment or hate speech, please answer questionnaire by the Finnish Ministry of Justice by 11th of November.

The purpose of the survey is to gain more information about hate speech and harassment and their impacts. In addition, the survey is used for deliberating how hate speech and harassment could be prevented.

The questionnaire responses will be handled confidentially and they will not be handed over to third parties. The survey report will be prepared in such a manner that no individual respondent can be identified.

You can also sign up for a personal interview by expressing your willingness for this in the questionnaire. In the interview, there is a more detailed discussion about the hate speech and harassment you have experienced and the impact it has had on you and your loved ones.

The survey is conducted by Owal Group Oy. The questionnaire responses will be used in the “Survey of experiencing hate speech and its influence on the feeling of safety by members of different minorities”.

Seta’s letter to Turkish authorities on violations against Kemal Ördek and LGBT Pride Parade

Puheenjohtaja Panu Mäenpää ja kaksi kirjettä Turkin viranomaisille, joissa vaaditaan ihmisoikeusaktivistin pahoinpitelyn sekä hlbti-marssiin kohdistuneiden voimatoimien selvittämistä ja sateenkaari-ihmisten turvallisuuden turvaamista jatkossa.

During this summer Turkish authorities have Seta send a protest letter to Turkish authorities Sebahattin Öztürk and Ahmet Davutoğlu on regards of ill-treatment suffered by human rights defender Kemal Ördek and participants of LGBT Pride Parade.

Additional information on LGBTI News Turkey:
Raped and assaulted, LGBTI activist Kemal Ördek says: “I´m not well…”

 

4th of August at Helsinki

Dear Sebahattin Öztürk and Ahmet Davutoğlu

We are writing to express our concern over the ill-treatment suffered by Kemal Ördek, human rights defender and founder of the Red Umbrella Sexual Health and Human Rights Association, together with hir lawyer at Esat Police Station in Ankara.

Ördek, an internationally highly respected defender of transgender and sex worker rights, was a victim of sexual assault, theft, threats and insults by three men in hir house on 5 July 2015. Ördek managed to run to a police patrol car when the perpetrators took hir to the ATM to take out money. The threatening behaviour of the perpetrators towards Ördek continued in the police vehicle and at the police station.

The police did not take the assault seriously, insulted Ördek, colluded with the perpetrators and released them without carrying out an effective investigation. After their release the perpetrators continued to harass Ördek via phone.

We call on the authorities to carry out a thorough investigation into the events of 5 July and the actions of the police, and ensure that Kemal Ördek receives appropriate protection against threats.

We are concerned over the safety of Kemal Ördek and will continue to follow the investigation process.

Furthermore, we are deeply concerned that police used unwarranted force, using tear gas, water cannons and rubber pellets against individuals who were peacefully assembling for the Istanbul LGBT Pride Parade on 27 June 2015.

We call on the Turkish government and authorities to combat all forms of discrimination and violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people and sex workers, and ensure that all victims of crime are treated with respect and dignity and their cases taken seriously.

We call on you to do everything in your influence to ensure that the human rights of LGBTI individuals and sex workers, as set out in the international treaties and standards to which Turkey is committed, are respected.

Sincerely,

Panu Mäenpää
Chair of the Board