Press Release: Helena Dalli, EU Commissioner for Equality on a two day visit to Iceland

European Commission -

Press release

Reykjavík, 10. maí 2023

European Commissioner for Equality Helena Dalli will be in Reykjavik on a two-day mission on 10 and 11 May 2023. She will deliver the keynote speech at the 2023 IDAHOT+ Forum, organised by the Icelandic Government and the Council of Europe at the Harpa Conference Hall on 11 May.

During her keynote speech, Commissioner Dalli will affirm that: “Legislative developments, case law, and policy initiatives by the European Commission have all tangibly improved peoples’ lives and contributed towards building more equal societies. But despite these advancements, the rising levels of violence and hatred against LGBTIQ people and human rights defenders in Europe concerns me deeply.”

Her intervention will discuss the importance of promoting and safeguarding the rights of LGBTIQ+ people through the Commission’s first LGBTIQ Equality Strategy 2020-2025. The strategy aims to achieve a Union of Equality, where equality and human rights are inextricable and collective commitments are crucial.

By providing an overview of the Commission’s work in implementing the strategy, Commissioner Dalli will explain: “We proposed to strengthen legal protection against discrimination by enhancing the powers and independence of equality bodies in all EU Member States. We put forward measures against hate crime and hate speech against LGBTQI+ people to the list of EU crimes. We presented harmonised rules at EU level regarding private international law relating to parenthood and through substantial funding we are empowering civil society organisations. Our pledge is to celebrate the collective richness of our European Union”.

During her visit, the Commissioner will hold a bilateral meeting with H.E. Katrín Jakobsdóttir, the Prime Minister of Iceland on shared commitments to promote gender equality and the rights of LGBTIQ+ people. She will also hold a meeting with Álfur Birkir Bjarnason, Chair of Samtökin78, the National Queer Association of Iceland as well as with representatives from the organization. Later during the day, the Commissioner will hold bilateral meetings with H.E. Guðmundur Ingi Guðbrandsson, Minister for Social Affairs and Labour of Iceland, and Roberta Clarke, Commissioner of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. The Commissioner will conclude her time in Iceland with a visit to the Althingi, the country’s Parliament and one of the longest-running Parliaments in the world.

Press contact:

Jeanne.ponte@ec.europa.eu