Homosexuals Banned From Donating Blood In Croatia

A coordinator for the Centre for Rights of Sexual and Gender Minorities says that a law preventing homosexuals from donating blood in Croatia is discriminatory.

Zoran Dominkovic says that the regulations of the Croatian Institute for Transfusion Medicine (HZTM), which state that “men who have had sexual relations with another man” are permitted from donating blood, needs to be changed, and that the risk of the potential donor and not their sexuality needs to be the focus.

“That is because homosexuals not always enter into risky relationships. Currently testing blood donors is done on the basis of outdated regulations, even though new ones came into force. That is why we have sent a letter of protest to HZTM and last month asked the Ministry of Health to inspect how the institute is carrying out is work”, said Dominkovic.

“It is not any kind of discrimination. Sexual orientation is a personal choice, we are just trying to lower the risks of sexually transmitted diseases. A epidemiological situation indicates that the most common risks for blood transmitted infectious diseases are found in this group (homosexuals), said the director of HZTM Irena Jukic.

Homosexuals are just one of seven categories which are banned from donating blood by the HZTM, reported Vecernji list.