LGBT rights in Switzerland

In Switzerland, the rights of individuals have traditionally had a high priority. At the same time, privacy is regarded as a fundamental asset. There is a strong contrast between cities and the countryside in public discourse about LGBT rights in Switzerland. Although some personal attitudes may change slower than the laws, the general public is tolerant of LGBT people and thus bias motivated violence or discrimination is all but unheard of. There is a vibrant LGBT community with a wide range of gay and lesbian subculture in the two main cities of Zürich and Geneva, as well as some on offer in the neighbourhood centres of Basel, Bern, Lucerne, Lausanne, and St. Gallen. Outside of these centres, LGBT people are barely noticed/noticeable in public.

Since the mid-1990s, an annual Coming Out Day has been held with various publicity events in order to encourage LGBT people to develop a positive relationship with their identity, particularly among young LGBT people.

Law regarding same-sex sexual activity

Same-sex sexual activity was decriminalised in 1942. The higher age of consent for same-sex sexual activity (20 years instead of 16 for heterosexual sexual activity) was repealed by the criminal law reform of 1992. In a national referendum on 17 May 1992, 73% of the voters accepted the reform of Swiss Federal legislation on sexual offences, including the elimination of all discrimination against homosexuality from the Penal Code. Article 187 of the Criminal Code states that the general age of consent for sexual activity in Switzerland is 16 years. If one partner is less than 16 years old but the age difference is less than three years, then an exception can be made.

Protection from discrimination

Since 1999, governmental discrimination based on sexual orientation has been constitutionally prohibited. Article 8 of the Constitution of the Swiss Confederation prohibits discrimination on the basis of way of life. Homosexuality is no longer mentioned in the Military Criminal Code, so LGBT people are allowed to serve in the army.

In Switzerland, politicians of all levels, up to the Federal Council, commit themselves time and again, regardless of their way of life, to the equal rights of LGBT people.

Claude Janiak, Councillor and former National President, is involved in AIDS work, Network, and the Pink Cross.

Pension benefits

At the end of August 2008, the Federal Court decided that long-term same-sex partners were entitled to the same vested benefits from the pension of the deceased as equivalent opposite sex partners have. A shared apartment is not necessary.

Recognition of same-sex relationships

Registered partnerships have been recognized since 1 January 2007, when the Partnership Act came into force. The provision grants same-sex couples most rights as in heterosexual marriages.[citation needed] The Canton of Zürich has allowed registered partnerships for some time. In 2007, one in ten of all marriages in the Canton of Zürich were registered partnerships between members of the same sex, and it has registered 702 couples as of 2008.

Adoption

LGBT people may adopt children singly, but there is no legal provision for same-sex couples to adopt children. However, the law may be revised to allow same-sex couples to adopt following a decision by the European Court of Justice on a case in France.

Article 27 treats the matter of the partner's child/children. The law states that the partner of the biological/adoptive parent must provide financial support for his/her partner's child and also possesses the full legal authority to represent the child in every matter as being the parent's partner. It also states that in the case of the couple's disband, the ex-partner has the right to keep close ties with their ex-partner's child. This article makes Swiss registered partnerships one of the most liberal partnership giving the couple a real role in being parents.

Prostitution

Article 195 of the Criminal Code makes no distinction between male and female prostitution. Prostitution is allowed, pimping is prohibited.

Pornography

Article 197 of the Criminal Code makes no distinction between homosexual and heterosexual pornography. Consumption, trade, import and production of adult pornography is allowed. Hard-core pornography and dissemination of pornography on radio and television are banned. Hard-core pornography includes depictions of violence, excrement, with children or animals in connection with sexuality. The representation of hard S & M, Scat, paedosexuality and zoophilia are therefore prohibited.

Spread of human disease

Article 231 of the Criminal Code penalises the deliberate spread of human diseases, e.g. HIV.