14. Azerbaijan
Frequent hate crimes against the LGBT population helped Azerbaijan to reach the top of the list of least gay-friendly countries in Europe. Azerbaijan. ILGA’s Rainbow Europe Index ranks 49 European countries according to the laws and policies that affect LGBT community. They are ranked on a scale of 0% to 100%, where 0% stands for gross violation of human rights and 100% for countries that fully accept equality and show respect for human rights. Azerbaijan is at the bottom of the list of least gay-friendly countries in the world (followed by with Armenia and Russia) with only 4.85%. Although homosexuality is legal in Azerbaijan, this index tells us that the country shows almost no effort towards implementing laws that protect human rights, including LGBT rights. The Guardian published a story of Javid Nabiyev, gay Azerbaijani activist, who explains that of all social groups that experience violence, LGBT community is the one that struggles the most. They are exposed to physical and psychological violence by the whole society, including their families. Javid, among many others, was forced to leave his homeland and now lives in a refugee shelter in Germany. Unfortunately, this is not a separate incident of violence against gays in Azerbaijan which definitely makes this country perfect for our list of least gay-friendly countries in the world.
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