Proposed Law to Target LGBTQ+ Hate Crimes in Ukraine

When Olha Poliakova was the subject of a homophobic attack on the streets of Dnipro one day, she knew that she had only two options: Flee to safety abroad, or stay in Ukraine and fight for a better future for all LGBTQ+ people.

“I chose the difficult option: to stay and advocate for our rights,” she said.

Olha is the founder of Gender Stream, a HIAS Ukraine partner organization that provides humanitarian services to LGBTQ+ people and carries out advocacy work. At present, their most urgent priority is to ensure that Bill 5488, a draft piece of legislation that would recognize and punish hate crime against the LGBTQ+ community, gets passed in the Ukrainian parliament.

It’s work that’s arguably more important than ever. Though there are currently no official mechanisms to track hate crimes against LGBTQ+ people in Ukraine, Gender Stream has noticed a rise since the war began in 2022 through their community monitoring channels.

What is Bill 5488 and why is it important?

Current conditions for LGBTQ+ people in Ukraine are challenging. One of the many hurdles they must face, other than not being able to enter legal partnerships, is that hate crimes against LGBTQ+ people are not clearly prohibited under Ukrainian law.

A violent hate crime against an LGBTQ+ person is considered the same as any kind of assault according to current legislation.

“The punishment for an assault is often just a small fine, that can be from 35 – 100 EUR,” Poliakova said. “That’s how much someone responsible for beating up an LGBTQ+ person in Ukraine right now has to pay.”

Law 5488 would finally create a legal framework to track and recognize hate crimes against LGBTQ+ people as an attack of a discriminatory nature and would allow for greater legal sanctions against perpetrators.

Gender Stream is providing training sessions to politicians and members of the police force to explain why Law 5488 is necessary to achieve equality.

LGBTQ+ displaced people at-risk of violence in shelters

Due to the war, many aspects of LGBTQ+ life have changed in Ukraine. One issue that Poliakova and her team have noticed through her community-based complaints channel is the rise in violent abuse against LGBTQ+ internally displaced people in shelters.

“We currently have no shelters in Ukraine that are inclusive of LGBTQ+ people. They are often run by families that refuse to allow LGBTQ+ couples to live together. We have also received reports about violent attacks against LGBTQ+ people in shelters for IDPs,” Poliakova said.

Discrimination in shelters would be easier to tackle if Law 5488 were approved, as this would provide LGBTQ+ internally displaced people with more legal protections from harm.

HIAS Ukraine is providing Gender Stream with financial and institutional support to make the passing of Law 5488 a reality.

For now, Poliakova and her team continue fighting for the better future she first envisioned when she herself experienced a hate crime: that not one other LGBTQ+ person in Ukraine will ever have to go through that again.