■ Sir Elton John, pictured with former Polish President Lech Welesa, during a 2006 gig in Sopot when the singer said: "Leave us [gays] alone. We don't want to harm anybody" Photo: KPH, Warsaw

LONDON, Friday June 29, 2007  –  A mock Eurovision song contest will be staged tomorrow afternoon though the streets of central London as part of the Pride London gay parade.

Organised by Amnesty International, who famously had a pink tank in the parade two years ago, tomorrow’s “Eurovision” will be on a huge float and will complete with giant scoreboard and music – plus a compere widely rumoured to be a Terry Wogan look-a-like.

The human rights organisation has chosen this theme to draw attention to how lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people experience very different treatment and protection across Europe – and how in some East European countries their rights are currently seriously at risk.

There have been attempts to ban Gay Pride marches in Russia, Moldova, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and several other countries. Organisers of these Prides have faced violent counter-demonstrations and threats because of their sexuality.

The Amnesty International supporters at Pride ~London will be awarding “null points” to some European countries, as they entertain other marchers and hand out action cards inviting people to petition East European countries for better protection of gay rights.

One supporter of Amnesty’s campaign for LGBT rights in eastern Europe is Sir Elton John.

“The right to choose who you love is a very basic human right,” he said.  “No government should ever interfere with that.

“And no one should try to make us stay in the closet and invisible by closing down Pride marches.

“Across eastern Europe, gay people are facing a lot of hate and threats against them.  If people everywhere stand up on their behalf and say that this is not acceptable and it has to stop, we can make a difference,” Sir Elton pointed out.

Amnesty International is very concerned at the disturbing rise in homophobia across eastern Europe.  Besides attempts to ban gay pride marches, Amnesty International is monitoring the cases of several gay rights campaigners who are receiving death threats because of their work in Kosovo.

There are also legal moves against gay people.  In Poland the ruling League of Polish Families has introduced legislation in Parliament to fight what they call ‘homosexual propaganda’, effectively a ‘Polish Clause 28’.

Under the legislation, LGBT organizations would be barred from schools and gay teachers who reveal their sexuality would be fired from work.

In Latvia the Parliament has voted against a law which would have protected gay people from discrimination.

■ At the time of posting, there are no changes in the plans of Pride London and the parade in the wake of the bomb for and defused in central London.  For any updates see the Pride London website

■ Click HERE for the Pride London parade route interactive map.

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