From the introduction:
And just like that, it is time for another Annual Report. Last year was the year where, while still being careful about potential Covid-19 risks, OII Europe resumed its in-person activities to the full extent. Highlights you will find in this report include the first in-person OII Europe Community Event & Public Conference since 2019, as in 2021 and 2022 we were only able to bring the broader community together in an online format, due to Covid.
On Council of Europe-level, highlights included the launch of the work on a new forthcoming Committee of Ministers Draft Recommendation on the equality of rights of intersex people during the high-level conference “Advancing the rights of intersex people”. During the conference, the first ever exhibition on intersex people at the Council of Europe premiered. The exhibition was curated by OII Europe and included 22 posters from its campaign #IntersexLives and from the publication #MyIntersexStory as well as video screenings of documentaries from the European intersex community.
On EU-level, OII Europe’s relentless awareness raising throughout 2023 led the European Parliament to include an article criminalising IGM in their draft report of the Directive on violence against women & domestic violence. This is a milestone that was very unlikely to be achieved in the context of this directive, but we believed that it could be possible. While the article, in the end, despite all ours and our allies’ efforts, did not survive the trilogue negotiations with Member State governments, the inclusion has set a new standard and we will continue to work for an inclusion in the future.
To end this small list of highlights, OII Europe was awarded the 2023 Alan Turing LGBTIQ+ Award for its outstanding advocacy work. This came as a complete surprise to us and we are very thankful for the organisations that nominated us and for receiving this prize.
All these highlights aside, we know that this world is a difficult place, and certainly not only for intersex people. Not only was 2023 the year of an ongoing war in Ukraine, where we have continued to support the intersex community, but we are also very much aware of other conflicts and attacks continuing and emerging on a global scale. Our thoughts and hearts are with all persons who are suffering from their impact. Working for the advancement of human rights for all is as important as it has always been and will always be. We are thankful for our member organisations’ great work and support in 2023, for the excellent cooperation with old and new allies, and for our funders who stand by our side.
We wish you a good read!
The OII Europe Staff and Steering Board
