This report is a summary of developments in the countries of the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia) and Turkey from January until December 2018. 

Chemsex is defined as “the use of specific drugs (“Chems”) in modern, smartphone-age sexual contexts by gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, and trans persons”. Problematic ChemSex – not drug use and sex per see - are associated with various harms such as a rise in HIV, hepatitis and STI transmissions as well as addictive practices, depression, psychosis, criminal activity and death from overdose or suicide, particularly when involving the use of crystal meth and the injecting of substances. 

This is a research produced by Geten: "Intersex - towards building an intersectional platform", which was completed with the support of the Embassy of the Netherlands in Serbia during 2018 and 2019.

ERA’s Annual General Assembly is the biggest LGBTI event organized in the region since 2015. The conference is a lobby, advocacy, capacity building and visibility event which brings together more than 160 participants from across the region, Europe and beyond. LGBTI activists, state officials (governments, Parliaments, equality bodies etc.), donors, researchers, journalists, diplomatic community, representatives of international organizations and members of the local community attend the event.  

The results of the survey on the experiences of LGBTI people in Southeastern Europe reveal a collective experience of discrimination, harassment, exclusion and violence. The report “Life on the Margins: Survey Results of the Experience of LGBTI people in South Eastern Europe” was published by the World Bank in partnership with IPSOS Strategic Marketing, ERA – LGBTI Equal Rights Association for the Western Balkans and Turkey, and the Williams Institute at UCLA.

This report has been developed as part of the project “Being LGBTI in Eastern Europe: Reducing In­equalities & Exclusion, and Combating Homophobia & Transphobia Experienced by LGBTI people in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Serbia” (BLEE). The project considered LGBTI issues in each of the countries from a human rights and development perspective, contextualizing these against the backdrop of civil society capacity development, com­munity mobilization and government competence.

Third and amended edition of the good practice guidelines for medical workers is a part of the project “Adequate and accessible health care for all”.

Širom Zapadnog Balkana, lezbejske, gej, biseksualne, transseksualne i interseks (LGBTI) osobe bore se za svoja prava da vode normalan život. Dok još uvek postoje zakoni i mere koje kriminalizuju i diskriminišu, nasilje i govor mržnje zasnovan na seksualnoj orijentaciji i rodnom identitetu, potrebno je još mnogo toga učiniti kako bi se postiglo puno razumevanje i jednakost.

Ovaj izvještaj je dio regionalnog projekta “Biti LGBTI osoba u Istočnoj Evropi” koji implementira UNDP a podržava USAID. Projekak se provodi u partnerstvu sa organizacijama civilnog društva i u saradnji sa organizacijom LGBTI Equal Rights Association (ERA). U Bosni i Hercegovini izvještaj je nastao u saradnji sa partnerskim organizacijama Sarajevski otvoreni centar i Action Against Aids iz Banja Luke.