October 7, 2020
CEL considers it very concerning that public figures on television shows have the space to use hate speech against LGBTI+ individuals. Considering the situation in our society, it is very important to pay attention to what content is being published by the media because of their role in raising awareness in the general population.
On October 6, the show “Prime Time” was published on the Youtube channel with the host Xhemajl Rexha, where the guests were Tomë Gashi and Milaim Zeka, among others. After a clash between the guests, the lawyer Tomë Gashi addressed the guest in an offensive and degrading manner, saying [quote]: “I don’t talk to f*ggots”. This language used in public normalizes hatred towards LGBTI+ individuals and encourages hatred towards the entire population in Kosovo. We urge higher authorities to react against the language used by lawyer Tomë Gashi and against CHANNEL 10 for allowing such language in television shows. Again, we call on the media to exercise extra caution in the content of broadcasts that are harmful, to distance themselves from such language, and to hold their guests accountable in such cases. We urge the media to distance themselves from such language and to publicly apologize to LGBTI+ individuals in Kosovo for the damage to their position in society.
