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Court Ban of Baltic Gay Pride March Is “Beyond
Understanding”
Organisers considering an appeal
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PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION BELOW, ORGANISED BY AMNESTY IN DENMARK
VILNIUS, May 5, 2010 – The Vilnius County Administrative Court has today effectively banned the ‘March for Tolerance”, the highlight of Baltic Gay Pride which takes place this coming weekend.
And Vytautas Valentinavicius, chairman of the Tolerant Youth Association, one of the organizers of the rally, told the Baltic News Service the court’s decision was “beyond understanding” and that he would seek legal advice on an appeal, the German DPA news agency is reporting.
Also hitting out at the court decision is Stiofan McFadden, the LGBT officer for the NUS in Scotland, who is in Vilnius for Pride. He decsribed the decision as “absolutely unforgivable”.
This afternoon, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, a former Commissioner at the European Commission in Brussels, said that if groups or organisations are not banned by law, they have the right to express their opinion as guaranteed by the Constitution of the country, Amnesty International reported this evening.
The court this morning ordered that the permission for the march given by the Mayor of Vilnius be suspended following an application by the acting Attorney General, and a second application from Raimondas Petrauskas, and Stanislovas Buškevičius, a member of the Kaunas City Council.
However, it should be noted that the decision of the court is to suspend the permission prior to full consideration. This means that there is no official court ban, but with the march just three days away, if the court decides in favour of Mr. Petrauskas, there is little time for any appeal.
However, observers in Lithuania are saying that the court is not expected to reach a decision until next week, after the scheduled event.
The Attorney General, in his submission to the court, said: “We have reason to believe that the state will not be able to provide proper protection for the participants.”
In his submission to the court, Mr. Buskevicius claims that the march “would offend the values dear to Lithuania – decency, fidelity, fertility, human dignity.” According to politician, the state should not embrace the life style that goes against the values of the majority, the Web site of Baltic Pride states.
Mr. Valentinavicius said that the organising committee was urgently seeking legal advice on a possible appeal to a higher court.
But while an appeal can be lodged within the next seven days, there are effectively two and a half days to get the appeal into the court, if the parade is to go ahead on Saturday.
Yesterday, when the move to ban the ‘gay pride march’ became known, the co-presidents of the European Parliament’s all-party Intergroup for Gay and Lesbian Rights, Ulrike Lunacek (Green, Austria)and Michael Cashman (Labour, UK), expressed their anger.
“The Lithuanian authorities should be very careful in their consideration of the Public Prosecutor's request,” they said in a joint statement.
“They must remember the binding international treaties they signed, including the EU’s Charter on Fundamental Rights, and the European Convention on Human Rights. As a result, they have the legal obligation to protect citizens’ freedom of assembly – including marchers’ safety, whether they like it or not.
“The European Parliament will move swiftly and decisively if Lithuania bans a gay pride parade – and we will ensure the European Commission does too,” they pledged.
The Dutch MEP Sophie in 't Veld, a vice president of the Intergroup, is scheduled to be in Vilnius this weekend, along with Ms. Lunacek and Mr. Cashman.
One hearing the news from Vilnius this morning, Ms. in 't Veld described the situation as “scandalous”.
ILGA-Europe and Amnesty International also expressed grave concern at the court move.
Last month, Amnesty International pointed out that the banning of the march, or the failure to ensure the safety of its participants, “would send a signal to all Lithuanians, and the rest of the world, that human rights are only selectively upheld [in Lithuania]”.
John Dalhuisen, Amnesty’s expert on discimination in Europe said today: “The authorities in Lithuania must ensure that the march goes ahead unobstructed and safely as they are obliged under international law to guarantee the rights to freedom to expression and assembly.
“Anything less will amount to discrimination.”
“The Attorney General’s application is an abuse of the legal process and will result in the violation of human rights.”
Mr. Dalhuisen went on to say that ‘diversity and tolerance’, ‘equality before the law for all’, ‘no discrimination on sexual orientation and gender identity grounds’ are the messages that LGBT rights activists will take to the streets of Vilnius.
“They must be able to do so without fear of threats and verbal or physical abuse,” he pointed out. “They must have the support of their authorities who are obliged by international law to protect the rights of the LGBT community.”
One person already in Vilnius for Baltic Pride is National Union of Students LGBT Officer, Stiofan McFadden. He was planning to march in solidarity with gays from the Baltic States on Saturday.
Now, he is organising an online petition to push for the decision to be reversed – and for British politicians to distance themselves from this decision.
“This decision by Lithuanian authorities to in effect ban the Baltic Pride march from happening this Saturday is absolutely unforgivable.
“To see such prejudice and discrimination in 21st Century Europe in this way is truly stunning. It’s simply unacceptable to deny any section of society their human rights, and this is even more the case for a country which is now a full, paid up member of the European Union.
“I'm calling on people across the UK to sign our petition to see this decision reversed. It’s also crucial that all our politicians in this country distance themselves from this decision, and use what pressure they can to see this decision reversed.
“We must stand as one in the face of prejudice, discrimination and injustice wherever it takes place,” he insisted.
Two months ago, Petras Gražulis, a member of the Lithuanian Order and Justice (Tvarka ir Teisingumas) party, claimed he had the signatures of “at least” 50 parliamentarians on a petition to the Prosecuters Office.
The petition claimed that the march would violate the controversial Law on the Detrimental Effect of Public Information on Minors, which came into force on March 1.
Additionally, the parade, Mr. Gražulis said, would be against the interests of Roman Catholics in the country.
And, according to the petitioners, the parade could become “a centre of attraction for patriotic youth and other active citizens”. And, they claim, this could lead to riots.
Yesterday, the Baltic Pride Web site fell victim to a hacker and was unavailable for some hours.
■ The Prime Minister of Lithuania, Andrius Kubilius, left Vilnius yesterday afternoon for a working trip to the USA, where he is promoting Lithuania as a good country fopr inward investment for American businesses. Today, he is scheduled to meet Ted Kelly, CEO of Liberty Mutual Group in Boston, before going to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for a meeting with MIT president Susan Hockfield followed by a speech on Lithuanian achievements to Sloan School Management students. Before leaving Boston this evening, he has meetings scheduled with Joseph M. Tucci, President of EMC Corporation and Stephen G. Pagliuca, Managing Director of Bain Capital Partners, LLC.
Tomorrow (Thursday), the Prime Minister meets with Republican Senator John McCain, Gary Locke, United States Secretary of Commerce, and Daniel B. Poneman, United States Deputy Secretary of Energy before a meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
On Saturday, hours after the scheduled March for
Tolerance in Vilnius, Mr. Kubilius is set to attend a US-Baltic
Gala Awards Dinner and the Mayflower Hotel.
SEE ALSO
Baltic Gay Pride’s ‘March for Equality’ in Lithuania Is Under Threat. Raimondas Petrauskas, Lithuania’s Interim Attorney General and Stanislovas Buškevičius, member of the Kaunas City Council, have applied to the courts to ban the Baltic Pride/March for Equality which is scheduled for this Saturday, May 8. The march has been given approval by the Mayor of Vilnius. (UK Gay News, May 4, 2010)
Lithuania’s ‘Protection of Minors’ Law and Gay Pride Discussed at European Parliament Public Hearing. The recent law Law on the Protection of Minors Against the Detrimental Effects of Public Information in Lithuania was vetoed twice in its early life, but what is in place effectively criminalises homosexuality, a Lithuanian MEP said this morning at a public hearing organised by the European Parliament's Intergroup on LGBT Rights. And a member of the Lithuanian Seimas, Rokas Zilinskas, added that the new law says that promotion of sexual intercourse to minors is illegal, and that the forthcoming Baltic Pride early next month “will not fall under this law”. (UK Gay News, April 29, 2010)
Lunacek and Cashman to Lithuanian Seimas: Don’t Ban Baltic Gay Pride. Gay Pride marches symbolise a day of peaceful celebration and engagement with other citizens – not separately from society, but as a full and equal part of it, the co-presidents of the European Parliament ‘Intergroup’ LGBT Rights have said in a letter to the Lithuanian Seimas (Parliament). And the publication of the text of the letter comes as at least two “hate groups” on Facebook were uncovered – both calling for violence against “sexual minorities”. (UK Gay News, March 17, 2010)
Politicians Try to Scupper Baltic Gay Pride Parade With Petition to Prosecution Office. A Lithuanian MP is attempting to scupper plans for the Baltic Gay Pride parade scheduled for early May in the Lithuanian capital, UK Gay News learned today from the office of the European Parliament’s all-party ‘Intergroup’ for LGBT rights. (UK Gay News, March 15, 2010)
Lithuanian ‘Anti Gay’ Law on the Protection of Minors Enters Statute Book Today. The controversial Lithuanian Law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effects of Public Information comes into force today. The law, in its earlier drafts, was seen as one of the most ‘anti gay’ pieces of legislation to have been passed by a member state of the European Union. (March 1, 2010)
MEPs Slam Lithuanian ‘Gay Hate Law’ in European Parliament. European values and surprise that a member state of the European Union could introduce what is seen as a “homophobic” law in the 21st century came to the fore as MEPs debated the “Law on the Protection of Minors from the Detrimental Effects of Public Information”, passed by the Lithuanian Seimas Parliament last June and due to become effective in March 2010. (UK Gay News, September 16, 2009)
MEPs to Quiz European Council and Commission on Lithuanian ‘Anti Gay’ Law. MEPs are set to quiz officials from the European Council of Ministers and the European Commission at the plenary session of the European Parliament this afternoon on the controversial ‘anti-gay’ legislation passed by the Lithuanian Seimas (Parliament) last summer. (UK Gay News, September 16, 2009)
Anti-Gay Law Is Vetoed by Lithuanian President.
The President of Lithuania, Valdas Adamkus, has vetoed the proposed new law
which was approved last week by the Seimas (Parliament). The law,
described by an MEP this week as “a spit into the face of European values”,
would ban “propaganda for homosexuality and bisexuality” as one of the
“detrimental effectors” on children. The ban will not only include
schools, but will also apply to “other places accessible to youngsters”.
(UK Gay News, June 26, 2009)
MEPs and NGOs Protest Against Harmful and Anti Gay Law in Lithuania. Members of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on gay and lesbian rights will today join other people and NGOs in a demonstration outside the Lithuanian permanent representation in Brussels to protest against new homophobic and oppressive law in Lithuania. (UK Gay News, June 24, 2009)
MEPs and Amnesty Hit Out at New Legislation
that Forbids Gay Issues Being Discussed in Schools
Lithuania Bans Information about Gays for Young
People in Education
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Posted: 5 May 2010 at
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