British diplomacy issued a public apology Monday July 5 for having banned the recruitment of gay people until 1991, a "
misguided
"
approach
that deprived the United Kingdom of some of its "
best talent
".
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Thirty years after the ban was lifted, in July 1991, Philip Barton, Permanent Undersecretary in the Foreign Ministry and Head of the Diplomatic Service, apologized. “
I want to apologize publicly for this ban and the impact it has had on our LGBT staff and their loved ones, here in the UK and abroad,
” Philip Barton said in a message to corps employees diplomatic.
Same sex relationships were decriminalized in 1967 in the UK.
But the ban on recruiting LGBT people was taken out of fear that they would be more vulnerable than heterosexuals to blackmail.
This fear had been fueled by several spy scandals such as that of John Vassall, a gay employee of the British Embassy in Moscow who had been trapped by the Soviets.
They blackmailed him and forced him to pass on secrets to the KGB.
Arrested in 1962, he was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
"
A misguided vision
"
“
The ban was in place because there was a perception that LGBT people were more vulnerable to blackmail than heterosexuals and therefore posed a security risk
,” said Philip Barton. “
Because of this misguided view, careers were interrupted, cut short or terminated before they could even begin. And the diplomatic service has undoubtedly deprived itself of some of the best talent in the UK,
”he lamented.
Foreign Minister Dominic Raab expressed “
gratitude
” to the “
British LGBT diplomats, past and present, who represent our country so brilliantly and promote our values to the world
”.
The public apology comes on the eve of an Intergovernmental Coalition for Equal Rights (ERC) conference, co-hosted by the UK on Tuesday and Wednesday.
In February, the head of the British secret service, Richard Moore, also issued a public apology for the discriminatory treatment inflicted on homosexuals, who had also been excluded from MI6 until 1991.