The European Evangelical Alliance (EEA) has raised concerns that the Council of Europe’s first Strategy for the Equal Rights of LGBTI People (2027-2032) could affect the freedom of expression of Christians who seek to live by biblical convictions in the council’s 46 member states.
Tatiana Kopaleishvili, the EEA’s representative to the EU in Brussels, told Christian Daily International that the strategy, published in September, is not legally binding but could influence national laws on conversion practices, school programs and hate speech across Europe.
The council’s Committee of Ministers has already adopted the strategy with the aim of “ensuring that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people can fully and equally enjoy their human rights.” It is scheduled to be officially launched Jan. 26, 2027, at the Council of Europe headquarters in Strasbourg, France, at an event organized by the Montenegrin Presidency of the Committee of Ministers.
A Council of Europe update on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression, and Sex Characteristics (SOGIESC) said the strategy brings together case law and standards developed since the European Court of Human Rights delivered its first judgment on LGBTI rights in 1981.
The update noted “important progress” in member states but said discrimination, hate speech, hate crime and violence persist, “while polarising narratives and disinformation increasingly target LGBTI people and undermine democratic values.”
The strategy sets four priorities: promoting recognition of the equal rights and dignity of LGBTI people, countering disinformation about them, preventing violence and hatred against them, and strengthening legal, institutional and regulatory protections.
The Council of Europe will support member states in implementing the strategy through “standard-setting, monitoring and cooperation, including legal and policy expertise, technical assistance, capacity-building and peer exchange.”
“As evangelicals, we believe every person is created in the image of God and has equal dignity,” Kopaleishvili said. “We fully support protecting LGBTI people from violence, harassment, hate crimes and unfair treatment. No one should be attacked because of who they are. We also welcome the Strategy’s recognition that faith-based organisations can be partners in building respectful societies.”
According to Kopaleishvili, the strategy brings together 45 years of court rulings, recommendations and reports into one plan. She said the document is significant because it could shape the direction of future governments, courts and monitoring bodies across Europe on these issues.
“It may decide on how they talk about and act on these issues, from schools and healthcare to online speech,” Kopaleishvili said.
“The strategy is not legally binding, so it does not create new law,” she said. “However, it draws on binding rulings of the European Court of Human Rights, and states will be monitored against it. In practice, it will encourage national laws on conversion practices, school programmes and hate speech.”
Kopaleishvili said she sees “possible areas of tension” regarding freedom of belief.
“The strategy does not explain how LGBTI equality should be balanced with the freedom of churches, parents and believers to live by their convictions,” she said.
“‘Conversion practices’ remain undefined in the document and this may result in too broad interpretations on the national level. Bans that are written too broadly could affect ordinary pastoral care, prayer and counselling that people freely ask for. Sincere religious beliefs about marriage and the human person should be part of democratic debate, not treated as a threat to it.”
Kopaleishvili also said the strategy calls for LGBTI-inclusive school curricula but does not mention parents. She said the European Convention on Human Rights protects parents’ right to have their children educated in accordance with their convictions, and that teaching on these topics should be balanced rather than one-sided.
She said the issue should not be viewed as a “contest between two sets of rights.” She cited Heiner Bielefeldt, former United Nations special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, who has spoken of the need to maximize human rights for everyone rather than limiting some people’s rights for the sake of others.
