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Introduction

The information contained on this page represents the situation as of 1 Janaury 2012 and is a summary of the country report produced by the country expert from the network. The summary can be downloaded here as well.

Contact: Wilfried Marxer
E-mail: wm@liechtenstein-institut.li

Country context

The Principality of Liechtenstein is one of the smallest countries in Europe, with only 36,000 inhabitants. Political power is shared equally between the elected parliament/the people and the monarch. The Parliament (Landtag) decides on new legislation, eventually replaced by the electorate by means of popular initiative or referendum.

Main principles and definitions

Direct discrimination is only defined in the AEPD and the AEWM in Liechtenstein law as “when a person is treated less favourably than another has been or would be treated in a comparable situation”. Direct discrimination according to this legal definition only occurs on grounds of disability (AEPD Art.6 §1) and on grounds of gender (AEWM Art.1a). Race and ethnic origin, religion and belief, age, and sexual orientation are not covered by this definition.

Enforcing the law

Several ministries and workgroups are supporting the enforcement of the laws by advising and counselling concerned persons, by coordinating activities, and by means of public relations and other activities. State authorities strongly co-operate with and support non-governmental associations financially. There exists a growing spectrum of associations and officers in charge of anti-discrimination, listed in section 6. These bodies can advise people and give them support.

Main legislation

Constitution of the Principality of Liechtenstein[1]. The constitution states in Article 37 that freedom of religion and belief is guaranteed by the constitution. Article 31 § 1 states that men and women are equal. There are no anti-discrimination provisions in the constitution with respect to other grounds such as disability, racial or ethnic origin, age, or sexual orientation.

Material scope

The AEPD states in Article 5 that people with disabilities shall not be discriminated against. This is a general rule concerning discrimination, covering all fields of discrimination. Article 10 specifies that employees in the public sector as well as in the private sector or in any other employment area shall not be discriminated against, neither in a direct nor in an indirect way. The anti-discrimination provisions in Article 10 also include the aspects of recruitment, payment, voluntary social security benefits, vocational training, occupational career and promotion, other working conditions, termination of employment, accessibility to job services, vocational training and other services outside an employment contract, membership and co-operation in trade unions, and conditions for the access to self-employment (Article 10 §1 lit. a to lit. k). There are no such legal provisions with respect to other grounds of discrimination, except gender (AEWM), where the provisions are similar to the AEPD.

Equality bodies

The main bodies that are dedicated to anti-discrimination – fully or partly – are:

Office for Equality of People with Disabilities[1]. This Office was installed by the government according to the Act on Equality of People with Disabilities (AEPD) which had entered into force in 2007. The Act states in Article 22 that the government installs an Office for Equality of People with Disabilities, which promotes legal and real equality of people with disabilities.

Go to the European Commission - Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities This initiative is financed by the EC Programme Progress. But the views expressed in this website do not necessarily reflect the official views of the EU institutions.