The Nationalist Party condemned all forms of discrimination against gay and transgender people and promised to continue working against all forms of discrimination.

In a statement issued on the occasion of International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, being celebrated today, the PN said that last year, the Nationalist government had introduced important amendments to continue fighting discrimination.

The criminal code was amended and fines for hate crimes were increased. The Equality Act was widened for the responsibilities of the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality to also cover sexual orientation discrimination.

The Nationalist Party was committed to continue working in this vein and its shadow cabinet included a spokeswoman on civil liberties.

This would lead the party to be closer to civil society including to organisations which worked among LGBT people.

Earlier, the Forum Zghazagh Laburisti also reiterated its position against all forms of prejudice and hatred on the basis of a person’s sexual orientation and will continue to actively participate in initiatives to promote diversity in society.

The Forum expressed its satisfaction at the government’s decision to set up a consultative council for civil liberties and looked forward to the introduction of civil unions among same sex couples, a right promised in the PL’s electoral manifesto.

The FZL encouraged the government to also address anomalies in the law which could lead to discrimination on LGBT couples, and to ensure that the message against homophobia was given in a stronger way with education playing a pivotal role.