Council of Europe adopts first standard to protect intersex rights

On 7 October 2025, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted the Recommendation on the equal rights of intersex persons (CM/Rec(2025)7). This document is considered the most comprehensive framework document ever adopted on the protection of human rights of intersex persons at the European level.

The document was adopted unanimously by 46 Council of Europe member states, including Azerbaijan. The Recommendation provides member states with specific guidelines on ensuring the rights of intersex people, eliminating violence and discrimination, and ensuring that medical interventions are carried out only on the basis of the free, informed and prior consent of the person.

The Recommendation covers issues such as ensuring the physical integrity of intersex people, access to justice, equality in health, education, employment and sport, as well as strengthening the fight against hate crime and hate speech. The document also recommends that member states prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex and protect the rights of intersex people to family, private life and asylum.

The Council of Europe will monitor the implementation of the document and will require member states to report on the measures taken to bring national legislation into line with these principles.

The leading European intersex rights organizations — OII Europe and ILGA-Europe — called this recommendation a “watershed moment for intersex rights” and stressed the importance of its implementation in all European countries, including Azerbaijan.

As a member of the Council of Europe, Azerbaijan has an obligation to take steps to implement this recommendation. Minority Azerbaijan believes that it is important to reflect the principles of this document in national legislation, in particular the implementation of provisions such as “prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex”, “principle of informed consent” and “protection of bodily integrity”.

Human rights organizations and civil society representatives are called on to strengthen educational activities, monitoring and legislative initiatives in this direction.

The full text of the Council of Europe's new recommendation on intersex rights can be found here: CM/Rec(2025)7 – Recommendation of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe

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