Consulate General of the Netherlands

We are all different. We are of different age and sex. We have different racial and ethnic backgrounds, lifestyles, religion, cultural values, political views, sexual orientation, and physical abilities.

It is exactly the differences that give us a possibility to show the diversity of life, accept the values of others and share our own. The Queer festival taking place in St. Petersburg already for the 3rd time is a wonderful opportunity for that.

The Consulate General of the Netherlands in St. Petersburg supports the Queer Festival and highly appreciates the work of the organizers aimed at reducing discrimination, social inequality and isolation and strengthening the idea of tolerance in the society.

Jennes de Mol

Consul General of the Netherlands

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Consulate General of Sweden

The fight against discrimination and intolerance and for equal rights is a difficult one, where civil society plays a vital role. Agents for change, such as your organisation, are carrying out valuable and important work. Your festival in 2010 was a great success and showed, in a non-confrontational way, that queer culture can play a positive role in society.

The Consulate General of Sweden commends your important initiative. We admire your steadfastness and courage and hereby reconfirm our strong support to the International Queer Culture Festival.

Jan Nyberg

Consul General of Sweden

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Amnesty International

We would like to congratulate you on your courage and dedication in organising the International Festival of Queer Culture, especially in the face of the very real risks of discrimination and violence faced by LGBT individuals in Russia, which Amnesty International has documented and continues to document. We strongly support the rights to freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and freedom of association which allow for culturally and socially important events such as the International Queer Culture Festival to take place, as well as the rights to freedom from violence that are held by all, including LGBTI individuals. Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the Russian Government to protect the rights of LGBTI individuals to freedom of expression, as well as to protect individuals from violence or harassment on the basis of sexual orientation of gender identity.

Javier Z??iga

Acting Head of Research & Regional Programmes

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LLH

The risk of violence and discrimination faced by LGBT-persons in Russia is very real, and the importance of events such as the International Queer Culture Festival cannot in this context be underestimated. We call on the Russian Government to recognize its duty to protect the rights of all its people, including lgbt-persons, and to provide sufficient support and security measures for the Queer Culture Festival to become a safe and great success.

We stand with you in solidarity, and wish you a wonderful celebration of queer culture, creativity, love, life and human rights.

B?rd Nylund,

President of LLH – the Norwegian lgbt association

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Campaign Against Homophobia

Taking into consideration the lack of support from the local and federal authorities, we congratulate you with conducting previous events at the highhest standards! We fully support your excellent initiative to organise the 3rd edition of the International Queer Culture Festival that will be a milestone on the road of fighting against discrimination and intolerance throught the effective use of culture.

With best regards,

President, Campaign Against Homophophia,

Tomasz Szypula

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COC Netherlands

The set-up of the festival combining knowledge exchange on different topics with all kinds of creative expression with results in celebration of diversity, which is very much supported by us. Only if we show ourselves we become visible, only if we speak up we are heard, only if we seek common ground with other individuals, organizations, institutions and individuals, we can start a movement that is capable of changing the wolrd.

In solidarity,

Koen van Dijk

Executive Director COC Netherlands

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?avaria

In September, St. Petersburg will see Russian human rights defenders host the third edition of its International Festival of Queer Culture.

?avaria, the Flemish (Belgium) umbrella organization of more than 100 LGBT-groups in Flanders and Brussels, sees this as an important opportunity for intercultural dialogue, where the beautiful city of St. Petersburg can find itself at the crossroads of Russian culture and exposing the harsh realities lived by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Russia.

We wish to congratulate you with this important initiative and we would like to express our support . We wish you good luck for the 2011th edition of the St. Petersburg International Festival of Queer Culture!

Kind regards,

?avaria, Belgium

International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Youth and Student Organisation

The Queer Festival has proved being more than just a cultural event. It has showed that unanimity has no boundaries and that art can be a tool to raise awareness of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of LGBTQI people.

We believe the great efforts the organizers of this annual event undertake to help artists, queer activists and their allies come together and enjoy the joyful mood and colors of this ten-day cultural festival will give their fruitful results, challenging homo/bi/transphobia, social prejudices and stereotypes about lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer people.

Sincerely,

Zara Shushanyan on behalf of the IGLYO Board and Staff

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The Justin Campaign

Coming Out has identified that through events like QueerFest people in wider society can be welcomed and introduced to a very bright diverse community, barriers can be removed and minds can be changed. The Justin Campaign fully supports the positive and ongoing work Coming Out are doing to make Russia a safer and more accepting country for the LGBT community.

Jason Hall
Founding Director
The Justin Campaign

SETA - LGBT Rights in Finland

We are proud to join the supporters of QueerFest 2011, the international queer culture event in St. Petersburg. QueerFest is an important expression and celebration of diversity and equality. Queer events have the power to unite and empower people to face and challenge discimination, violence and inequality in the society.

Seta congratulates Coming Out for its efforts in compiling an interesting and exciting program for the QueerFest 2011, and wishes a successful and joyos festival in the magnificent city of St. Petersburg.

Aija Salo
Secretary General
SETA - LGBT Rights in Finland

Homoglobiini ry - LGBT Students of Turku (Finland)

Turku and Saint Petersburg have been twin towns since 1953. This arrangement has fostered fruitful cultural and individual exchanges between the two. It is our wish that Saint Petersburg's International Queer Culture Festival will promote refreshing cultural encounters and discoveries in the same fashion, regardless of nationality or sexual identity. It is commendable that you seek to raise queer awareness through art, a universally accessible language at once public and deeply personal.

Kirsi Mikkonen
President
Homoglobiini

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ACT-Q ROM?NIA - LGBT ORGANIZATION FOR CULTURE & COMMUNICATION

The fact that Queer Culture Festival will take place in an amazing city, full of history and cultural values will give a big plus to your event.

Also the fact that you choose to speak about diversity, human rights and LGBT issues using the universal language of arts is a joy to us and honour us.

May the history be rewritten at this event that must grow year after year.

Daniel Ionescu and Ciprian Vantu

ACT-Q ROM?NIA

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Amnesty International Ireland

We at Amnesty International Ireland fully support your struggle for tolerance, diversity and respect your stance of drawing attention to homophobia, transphobia and abuses of rights to assemble and other forms of discrimination in Russia.

We believe the International Queer Festival represents a valuable opportunity to highlight, peacefully and lawfully, the issues that affect vulnerable groups of society including LGBT people. We at Amnesty International Ireland fully support your right to organise and hold this event and wish you and everyone involved every success for the 3rd International Queer Festival in St. Petersburg.

Golm O'Gorman

Executive director

Amnesty International Ireland

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