Introduction

Abstract

The Serbian Criminal Code criminalized male homosexuality until 1994. For decades beforehand, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans (LGBT) people in the country faced widespread social, political, and police harassment. They endured unequal treatment and had no legal rights or protections related to their sexual orientation or gender identity. In the two decades since 1994, Serbia has repealed the ban on homosexuality, passed a range of antidiscrimination protections for LGBT people, and established a human-rights ombudsperson with a mandate to examine and uphold the rights of LGBT people. Prominent government figures speak of the need to protect LGBT people and their rights, and there is increasing acceptance of LGBT people in wider Serbian society. In 2001, an LGBT-rights protest in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, was violently attacked by right-wing protestors while politicians and police looked on. In 2010, by contrast, the Serbian government itself co-organized an LGBT Pride parade, and the police shut off the center of the capital city, providing thousands of officers to protect Pride participants.