Gay News From Balkan

[haiducii]

The Catholic Church has struck again.

Yes. They even organized bus transfers to the polling stations after the Sunday mass. On the other hand, most liberal citizens (lazy asses) stayed at home watching ski jumping on TV...

 

[gorgik9]

Associated Press reports:





The civil rights of any group should never be put to a popular vote IMHO. But sometimes it works out and other times not.

I guess that on this point we're in total agreement

But IF there should be a referendum on civil rights I think the referendum must have at least 2/3 of the population actually voting - otherwise the referendum won't be a particularly popular vote. And less than 40% actually voting is definitely not good enough.

As haiducii said: Liberals might be liberal, but they're also some damn lazy asses :angry:

 

[Stonecold]

My heart aches for the Gays in Slovenia, so wrong to vote on basic human rights.

Frenchgerman
Germany doesn't accept gay mariage either

I think it is shocking that Germany is so backwards on Gay rights, Angela Merkel puts herself out as such a caring person with helping refugees while at the same time not having a problem with treating Gay Germans as second class citizens. One day maybe all will be equal in Germany.

 

[haiducii]

Greek Parliament Legalizes Same-Sex Civil Partnerships

ATHENS, Greece - The Greek parliament on Tuesday voted to adopt a bill that legalizes civil unions for same-sex couples. The landmark decision came after a prolonged and heated debate.

''Today, we acknowledge the opportunity for all people, regardless of their gender and sexual orientation, to live together,'' Tsipras said. ''Today is an important day for human rights, for the equality of all our fellow citizens before the law.''

READ MORE

 

[haiducii]

Montenegro Gays March for More LGBT Rights

The third annual Podgorica Pride LGBT parade takes place in the Montenegrin capital on Sunday Dec 15, 2015, after being postponed in October when anti-government protests erupted in Podgorica.



Homosexuality remains a hot issue in the socially conservative country, as it does elsewhere in the Balkan region. Some surveys suggested that 71 per cent of citizens in Montenegro consider homosexuality an illness, and every second citizen agrees that homosexuality is a danger to society and that the state should work to suppress it.

The Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro, the most powerful religious community in the country, remains firmly opposed to gay rights. According the same surveys, 67 per cent of people believe the church's stand against homosexuality is correct.

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[haiducii]

Romanian Priests Push for Gay Marriage Ban

Romanian Orthodox clergy are drumming up support for a change to the constitution defining marriage as an union between a man and a woman alone.

The days following Christmas have been a good opportunity for Orthodox priests accross Romania to encourage parishioners to back a campaign for a change to the constitution outlawing same-sex marriage. More than 85 per cent of Romania’s population of 19.5 million belong to the Orthodox Church, which enjoys high levels of trust in the public.

''Romania is not yet ready to encourage marriage between same-sex persons and in my opinion this topic came up in public too early'', sociologist Tudor Pitulac said.

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[bigsal]

Mankind can feel truly free, when religions will disappear.

 

[haiducii]

1.3 million signatures for constitutional ban on gay marriage in Romania

Up to 1.3 million Romanians have signed a petition asking for constitutional ban on gay marriage. Signatures were gathered by of 23 non-governmental organizations united under the umbrella name “Coalition for Family”. Mihai Gheorghiu, president of the Coalition’s initiative committee, announced that the petition now has 1,350,000 signatures in favour of an amendment to Romania’s Constitution, which would define the marriage as the consensual union of a man and a woman.

The relevant draft law was published in the Official Gazette on 25 November 2015. It proposes the rewording of Article 48, paragraph 1 of the Constitution as “The familiy is based on a consensual marriage of one man and one woman, on their equality, and on the parents’ right and obligation to provide for bringing up, educating and training their children”.

The initiative committee includes Orthodox, Catholic, Greek Catholic, Baptist and Pentecostal believers. Article 150 of the Constitution allows amending the fundamental law if at least 500,000 citizens with voting right support a specific modification.

Bucharest, February 3, 2016 By Irina Stoica

 

[W!nston]

Look at the expression on the face of that woman front and center in the photo. It reminds me of one of the peasants with pitch forks and torches storming the Frankenstein castle looking for the monster so they could destroy him.

I wonder if she is a 'mother'? I would bet she is a mother many times over. What would she say if one of her children came out as Gay? I'd bet she would chase him out of her house with a broom or worse. I'd bet he would be chased out of the village by a mob of such 'mothers'.

There is a war on Gays in most of the world. Where is the uproar from Europe's legions of politically correct activists who say 'refugees' from war deserve saving?

Russian Gays and Eastern European Gays are in grave danger and they are being passed over or required to prove they are Gay and that they are being personally persecuted. Here in America there are so many obstacles that restrict homosexuals from immigrating that the number of homos allowed to immigrate are so small it's non-existent. I couldn't even find any figures for them in the census bureau's statistics. Maybe someone else can find numbers of homo immigrants to Europe and America. What are the restrictions on homo immigrants in German or Italy or France?

This story has my blood pressure rising! :angry:

 

[gorgik9]

Let's talk a bit about the political project of defining the concept of marriage in such a way that a gay marriage becomes impossible, a contradictio in adjecto, and let's invite Friedrich Nietzsche to the party!

Nietzsche says in one of his texts: "- Any concept with a history cannot be defined in the strict sense."

So the interesting question will be: Is marriage a concept with a history? Answer: you bet it is! Just like "family", a word which of course has its origins in ancient latin familia; is a pater familias the same thing as a modern "family father"? Well, it's the same word, but the concept is very different.

 

[haiducii]

Croatia: Court backs woman over gay discrimination complaint

Human rights judges agreed on February 23, 2016, that Croatia’s decision to make it impossible for a partner in a same-sex relationship to obtain a residence permit for family reunification was discriminatory.

In chamber judgment in the case of Pajić v. Croatia (application no. 68453/13) the European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been: a violation of Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) taken in conjunction with Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The case concerned the complaint by Danka Pajić, a national of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who is in a stable samesex relationship with a woman living in Croatia, of having been discriminated against on the grounds of her sexual orientation when applying for a residence permit in Croatia.

The court found in particular that Pajić had been affected by a difference in treatment between different-sex couples and same-sex couples introduced by the Aliens Act, which reserved the possibility of applying for a residence permit for family reunification to different-sex couples.

The Croatian Government had not shown that that difference in treatment was necessary to achieve a legitimate aim or that it was justified by any other convincing reason.

As Just satisfaction (Article 41), the Court held that Croatia was to pay Pajić 10,000 euros (EUR) in respect of non-pecuniary damage and EUR 5,690 in respect of costs and expenses.

Entire ruling can be downloaded HERE.

 

[haiducii]

Slovenia: Top court says same-sex partners can also register in unofficial setting

The Constitutional Court has ruled that same-sex couples need to be allowed to also register their partnership outside of administrative units just like heterosexual couples can marry outside of official premises.

In the decision, announced on Friday, the top court agrees with the initiator of the review, the Administrative Court, that current provisions fail to put same-sex couples on par with heterosexual partners, who can marry outside of official premises.

Giving parliament six months to remedy the situation, the Constitutional Court said same-sex partners should be allowed to register outside of administrative units if they put forward important reasons for this.

The decision comes after the Constitutional Court allowed in 2012 and 2015 referendums on legislation introducing gay marriage. In the last vote in December last year, opponents of gay marriage and adoption defeated gay marriage with 63.5% of the vote.

Slovenia introduced civil unions for same-sex couples in 2005, but this does not provide for many of the rights afforded to married couples, including on inheritance and visitation rights. The inheritance issue was acknowledged by the Constitutional Court in 2009 and again in 2013.

 

[haiducii]

Albanian Gays Party to Defeat Isolation

LGBT activists in Tirana stage regular club nights so they can party in peace, but also to combat isolation and encourage networking.

It was not an ordinary Saturday night out at the Disco Lux in downtown Tirana. Organizers at the main entrance were asking partygoers to sign in with their full names and phone numbers or email addresses.

Some of the guests appeared hesitant to do so, but after the activists in charge explained that it was for their own security and that their data would remain confidential, they eventually signed in and entered the club.

This was the unofficial Valentine's Day party of Albania's LGBT community, which after several delays for technical and organizational reasons, was finally staged by a group of NGOs in the capital on Saturday...

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[haiducii]

Same-sex partnership act passed

Ljubljana, 21 April - The National Assembly passed on Thursday a bill that provides formal equality to gay couples, except for marriage, adoptions or in-vitro fertilisation (IVF).

 

[gb2000ie]

Same-sex partnership act passed

Ljubljana, 21 April - The National Assembly passed on Thursday a bill that provides formal equality to gay couples, except for marriage, adoptions or in-vitro fertilisation (IVF).

That's great news!

Hopefully, in a few years, when it becomes clear that gays marrying will not end the world, it will be possible to push through full equality.

B.

 

[scace]

Croatia: Court backs woman over gay discrimination complaint

Human rights judges agreed on February 23, 2016, that Croatia’s decision to make it impossible for a partner in a same-sex relationship to obtain a residence permit for family reunification was discriminatory.

In chamber judgment in the case of Pajić v. Croatia (application no. 68453/13) the European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been: a violation of Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) taken in conjunction with Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The case concerned the complaint by Danka Pajić, a national of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who is in a stable samesex relationship with a woman living in Croatia, of having been discriminated against on the grounds of her sexual orientation when applying for a residence permit in Croatia.

The court found in particular that Pajić had been affected by a difference in treatment between different-sex couples and same-sex couples introduced by the Aliens Act, which reserved the possibility of applying for a residence permit for family reunification to different-sex couples.

The Croatian Government had not shown that that difference in treatment was necessary to achieve a legitimate aim or that it was justified by any other convincing reason.

As Just satisfaction (Article 41), the Court held that Croatia was to pay Pajić 10,000 euros (EUR) in respect of non-pecuniary damage and EUR 5,690 in respect of costs and expenses.

Entire ruling can be downloaded HERE.

We have to hope human rights continues to grow in these obviously backward Countries-much like most of the South in the U.S.

 

[haiducii]

Kosovo holds first ever gay pride march

Pristina (AFP) - A few hundred people from Kosovo's gay and lesbian community held their first ever pride parade Tuesday, seeking acceptance and respect of their rights in the conservative society.

The participants marched under heavy police presence through downtown Pristina, waving rainbow flags to mark the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.

Many public figures, including President Hashim Thaci and the US and British ambassadors to Kosovo, marched at the head of the column to voice support for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

"I am out, therefore I am", "Come out now, ask us how" and "Homophobia-free zone," read the banners carried by the marchers, dressed in colourful clothes and watched my curious bystanders.

Three non-governmental groups that organised the march urged people in mainly ethnic Albanian and Muslim Kosovo to eradicate homophobia and respect the LGBT community's rights.

"Sexual orientation and gender identity should not be a cause for discrimination," they said in a statement.

They said the rally was "for LGBT persons who could not be part of the march because they are surrounded by homophobia and transphobia in Kosovo".

However, Thaci insisted to reporters that "every citizen, regardless of ethnicity, regardless of gender, enjoys equal rights."

Hundreds of police officers guarded the parade, which passed off peacefully.

The event was not announced in advance due to fears of possible incidents.

SOURCE

 

[haiducii]

Thousands Take Part in Zagreb Pride

This year’s motto was “Croatia Has Not Yet Perished”.

Around seven thousand people took part in the 15th Zagreb Pride on Saturday. This year, in addition to gay rights, the participants wanted to emphasize the importance of defence of all freedoms for all Croatian citizens, reports Jutarnji List on June 11, 2016.

With colourful banners with slogans such as: “Pride without prejudice”, “Only love vs. Let them drop dead”, “Our children deserve better”, “Journey to the dark side is not our choice”, the participants strolled through the city centre to show their disagreement with the current direction of the country.

“Fifteen years are behind us, and in that time a lot has changed. We are freer and accept diversity. However, in the last few months you can feel divisions in our society. Since the referendum against gay marriage, the march against abortion and the burning of a Gay Pride flag a few days ago – all this shows that the right of speech and the right to a different opinion are endangered. We have gathered here in order to send a message that Croatia must remain a free and democratic society without returning to the darkness and extremism”, said Marko Jurčić, one of the organizers of Zagreb Pride.

This year’s event was joined by significantly more people than last year, when according to police estimates there were about 5,000 people. The largest Pride took place in 2013, when about 15,000 people marched through the city centre. This year, the event attracted many well-known people, include numerous politicians from liberal and left-wing parties. One of them was former Interior Minister Ranko Ostojić, who took over the Pride flag and carried it for a while.

The participants highlighted the importance of ensuring the freedom for all women who must be allowed to make decisions about their body, they demanded freedom of all media, particularly public and non-profit, without fear of censorship from the state or the Church, as well as freedom for all LGBTIQ people.

SOURCE

 

[haiducii]

Ljubljana (SLO): Pride Parade participants again call for tolerance

The 16th annual Pride Parade in Ljubljana on Saturday evening attracted around 1,500 supporters of gay rights to once again call for tolerance, in particular in the light of the recent attack on a gay club in Orlando, Florida.

The parade started at the Metelkova counter-culture centre, where the participants were greeted by parliamentary Speaker Milan Brglez.

Brglez said that he was attending the event because it was about the equality for all citizens, stressing that much had still to be done in that field.

The parade then proceeded to the city centre, where it was addressed by Mayor Zoran Janković, who said that the capital would always support events such as the Pride Parade.

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[haiducii]

Serbia's First Openly Gay Minister Makes History

Ana Brnabic is making waves. She is one of six new ministers in the Serbian government, but has been getting all the public attention, as she is poised to become the first openly gay minister to serve in any Balkan country.

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