Greece to vote on legalising same-sex marriage in a first for an Orthodox Christian country
The Hindu
Greece's Parliament to vote on legalizing same-sex civil marriage despite opposition from the Greek Church.
Greece’s Parliament is to vote on February 15 to legalise same-sex civil marriage in a first for an Orthodox Christian country and despite opposition from the influential Greek Church.
As lawmakers debated the Bill for a second day, opinion polls suggest that most Greeks support the proposed reform by a narrow margin. The issue has failed to trigger deep divisions in a country more worried about the high cost of living.
The landmark Bill drafted by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis ′ centre-right government is backed by four left-wing parties, including the main opposition Syriza.
That would secure it a comfortable majority in the 300-seat Parliament. Several majority and left-wing lawmakers are expected to abstain or vote against the reform — but not enough to kill the Bill. Three small far-right parties and the Soviet-inspired Communist Party have rejected the draft law.
Supporters and opponents of the Bill have announced plans to hold separate gatherings outside Parliament later Thursday.
“People who have been invisible will finally be made visible around us. And with them, many children (will) finally find their rightful place,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told lawmakers ahead of the vote. “Both parents of same-sex couples do not yet have the same legal opportunities to provide their children with what they need," he added. "To be able to pick them up from school, to be able to travel, to go to the doctor, or take them to the hospital. ... That is what we are fixing.”
The Bill would confer full parental rights on married same-sex partners with children. But it precludes gay couples from parenthood through surrogate mothers in Greece — an option currently available to women who can't have children for health reasons.