by Alessandra Cardone

ROME, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Marking the International Day Against Homophobia on Thursday, groups defending gay rights denounced an increase in hate speech and abuses in Italy.

A total of 119 episodes of violence or discrimination were registered against LGBT people (lesbian, gay, bisexual/transgender) from mid-May 2017 to May 15, 2018, Arcigay association said.

Their list considered only cases reported by national news outlets, and aimed at providing a qualitative analysis of the ways in which homophobia and transphobia affect people in the country, according to the group.

"One element to underline is that there were four killings among these 119 stories of violence, and three of them concerned very young people," secretary Gabriele Piazzoni said in a statement.

According to another estimate by association Gay Center, an average 50 episodes of various mistreatments against homosexual and transsexual people occur every day in Italy.

The group's analysis was based on latest statistics gathered through a helpline service they manage with the help of Ministry of Education, police, and several civic associations.

Since the helpline was created in 2006, the Gay Center said it has received about 240,000 requests.

Last year, the group registered over 20,000 calls for help, including 3,200 cases of minors variously targeted for being gay, lesbian, or transsexual. Over 400 cases of serious family abuses against people aged 12-25 were registered.

"We have also seen a 4 percent annual increase (up to 17 percent) in blackmail attempts," Gay Center spokesperson Fabrizio Marrazzo confirmed in a statement.

Communication on social media would have made LGBT people more vulnerable to hate speech, threat, and blackmail from individuals and groups, according to Marrazzo.

"A further relevant point is that the age of the perpetrators is progressively lowering," he stressed.

According to last year's data, the association estimated a 6 percent increase in the number of people declaring their sexual orientation. As for discrimination, central Italy would register the highest number of abuses (41 percent), followed by northern Italy (35 percent), and the South (24 percent), the Gay Center stated.

"Very alarming is the fact that only 1 victim out of 40 seems to believe that denouncing may improve the situation," Marrazzo explained. "This happens especially among the youngest, who fear not only (social) discrimination, but the reaction of their families as well."

Italy ranked 32 out of 49 European countries in terms of respect of LGBT rights, according to the latest Rainbow Europe index provided by ILGA-Europe association earlier this week.

Almost two years ago, in May 2016, Italy passed its first ever law on same-sex civil unions, as such joining the majority of its European partners.

With the civic union, both same-sex and heterosexual couples were granted almost the same rights, benefits, and protection as married couples.

Yet, gay and lesbians were still denied marriage, and the country was still lacking a specific law against homophobia, national LGBTI groups said.

The International Day Against Homophobia is celebrated on May 17 since 2004, marking the date in which the World Health Organization decided to scrap homosexuality from the list of mental disorders in 1990.