Smith and Grady v UK (1999) 29 EHRR 493
Citation: Smith and Grady v UK (1999) 29 EHRR 493
Rule of thumb: Is it a human rights violation to sack a person from an organisation because they are asked if they are a homosexual & admit that they are? As a general rule, yes – this is a violation of the right to privacy, because there is not a right to ask a person what sexuality they are as this a violation of their human right to privacy & then use this against them. However, this was a complex Judgment because it was not strictly deemed that a ban on open homosexuality in the military was a human rights violation – this was not held to be a violation of the right against discrimination (when people of the same sex are away together for long periods in the military environment it was not stated that no legitimate purpose was served by this armed forces policy) - it was just a human rights violation to ask people about it with people allowed to keep this aspect of their private lives private.
Judgment:
”these attitudes, even if sincerely felt by those who expressed them, ranged from stereotypical expressions of hostility to those of homosexual orientation, to vague expressions of unease about the presence of homosexual colleagues. To the extent that they represent a predisposed bias on the part of a heterosexual majority against a homosexual minority, these negative attitudes cannot, of themselves, be considered by the Court to amount to sufficient justification for the interferences with the applicants’ rights outlined above any more than similar negative attitudes towards those of a different race, origin or colour.”
Warning: This is not professional legal advice. This is not professional legal education advice. Please obtain professional guidance before embarking on any legal course of action. This is just an interpretation of a Judgment by persons of legal insight & varying levels of legal specialism, experience & expertise. Please read the Judgment yourself and form your own interpretation of it with professional assistance.