Nash Mir (Our World) Gay and Lesbian Center has been registered as non-governmental organization in Ukraine. The certificate No. 408 of November 30, 1999, was issued by the Department of Justice in Lugansk Region. In April 1999 the local Ukrainian Department of Justice refused the state registration of Our World on formal grounds. The refusal was allegedly not connected with the gay nature of the organization. However, there was strong evidence, including informal statements by the officials, to the contrary. The appeal was laid with a district court, but the suit failed.
Our World appealed to international organizations. Amnesty International carried out a campaign for support of Our World Center. The Ministry and the Department of Justice received support letters from all the world requiring them to register the organization. Ukrainian branch of Soros Foundation Network (Renaissance Foundation) lobbied the issue in the Ministry of Justice and rendered legal assistance. Regrettably, Our World got virtually no support from Ukrainian human rights organizations. Only Ukrainian section of the International Society for Human Rights supported them on the domestic level.
These efforts and the combined pressure on the Ukrainian authorities made the official registration of Our World possible.