LGBT rights in Serbia

LGBT rights in Serbia
Location of Serbia (green) – Kosovo (light green)
on the European continent (dark grey)
StatusLegal nationwide since 1994,
age of consent equalized in 2006
Gender identityTransgender people allowed to change legal gender, without any surgery[1][2]
MilitaryLesbians, gays and bisexuals allowed to serve openly
Discrimination protectionsSexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics protections (see below)
Family rights
Recognition of relationshipsNo recognition of same-sex relationships
RestrictionsSame-sex marriage constitutionally banned
AdoptionSame-sex couples not allowed to adopt

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Serbia face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Serbia, and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is banned in areas such as employment, education, media, and the provision of goods and services, amongst others. Nevertheless, households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples.

In May 2014, Amnesty International identified Serbia as one of a number of countries where there is a marked lack of will to tackle homophobia and transphobia, noting that public authorities had repeatedly banned pride marches on the basis of violent threats from homophobic groups. They had also failed to protect LGBT individuals and organizations from discrimination, including verbal and social media threats and physical attacks.[3][4] The Belgrade Pride successfully took place in September 2014 in Belgrade.[5] Since then, successful pride parades have been held every year, with local mayors and some government ministers regularly attending.[6] In 2021, the association ILGA-Europe ranked Serbia 23rd in terms of LGBT rights out of 49 observed European countries.[7]

In June 2017, Ana Brnabić became the Prime Minister of Serbia, as the first woman and first openly gay person to hold the office, and the second female LGBT head of government overall (after Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir of Iceland). She was also the first Serbian Prime Minister to attend a pride parade.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference pravilnikPromenaPola_transSerbia was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference pravilnikPromenaPola_official was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "SERBIA: STILL FAILING TO DELIVER ON HUMAN RIGHTS" (PDF). Amnesty International. January 2018. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  4. ^ "Homophobia still tolerated by governments around the world". Amnesty International. 16 May 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  5. ^ "USPEH: Beograd Prajd 2014 – nova strana istorije!". Parada ponosa Beograd. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  6. ^ "Serbian Prime Minister, Belgrade Mayor Join Gay-Pride Parade". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty.
  7. ^ "Country Ranking – Rainbow Europe". rainbow-europe.org. Retrieved 28 August 2022.

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