The LesBian News Stack 2010 – May 6

By Saskia Joreen on Thursday, May 6, 2010 - 18:01

A not-so-surprising cancellation of the Baltic Pride march, gay adoption in Denmark, and much more.

Lithuania

Baltic Pride’s march, which was scheduled to take place in Vilnius on May 8, was banned by Lithuanian court yesterday. Baltic Pride’s permit has been temporarily suspended because the police would not be capable of controlling the situation if it got out of hand.

Pride organisers immediately appealed the decision, taking it to the Supreme Administrative Court. The first hearing was scheduled to be held this morning. If the permit will not be re-established by Saturday, it might still be able to receive a permit for a later date. Several members of the European Parliament, ILGA-Europe and Amnesty International have condemned the court’s decision.

Leonidas Donskis, a Lithuanian representative in the European Parliament, reacts:

With this [court] decision, Lithuania distances itself from Europe to resemble Russia, where gay prides are banned by authorities and minority rights are trampled: it is a nightmare becoming truth. Democracy, rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms is what we fought for and then further strengthened by entering the EU. The president and the government must act to make sure the pride [parade] can take place, as in any other democratic country.
As quoted by Baltic Reports

The rest of the Baltic Pride events will still take place.

Europe

Last week, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted a Resolution on Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. The adopted Resolution points to an extensive range of human rights violations, affecting the lives of millions of people, which still take place within the member states of the Council of Europe. The provisional edition of the Resolution can be found here.

Belgium

Senator Bart Tommelein has stated that anti-gay hate crimes are not being taken seriously by Belgian authorities. After reviewing the official statistics on homophobic violence, he concluded that homophobic violence has been underreported in Belgium, especially compared to neighbouring countries like the Netherlands. He calls for more awareness among police and gays themselves.

Denmark

Good news from Denmark! Couples in registered partnerships now have the same rights as married couples when it comes to adoption. Previously, Danish gays and lesbians could adopt as individuals or adopt the children of their partner under the step-child adoption laws.

A little disappointing side note is that the Danish Liberal-Conservative government doesn’t actually back the new legislative bill. The bill was passed by Parliament, but the government voted against it. Justice minister Lars Barfoed was quoted as saying: “I think children as a rule need a mother and a father.” However, the Danish National Association of Gays & Lesbians (LGBT Denmark) called the new legislation a “big step” for gay rights in Denmark.

Germany

The gay and lesbian foundation HMS has published a guide about heirs and inheritance rights, specifically aimed at gays and lesbians. They did this because family situations of LGBTs usually vary from those of heterosexuals, for instance when it comes to having (biological) children. The brochure can be downloaded and ordered via the HMS site.