BELGRADE — (09-17-22) — Anti-LGBTQ activists’ tensions are mounting in Belgrade as LGBTQ activists promised to stage a EuroPride march today in the Serbian capital despite a government ban. The interior ministry banned the EuroPride march earlier this week citing security concerns after right-wing terrorist groups threatened to hold protests.
The conservative ruled Balkan country that is a candidate for European Union membership, has been under intense international pressure to allow the march. More than 20 embassies including from the United States, France and Britain issued a joint statement urging authorities to lift the ban.
Same-sex marriage is still illegal in Serbia, where homophobia remains deep-seated in both the society and in government, despite some progress over the years in reducing discrimination.
Watch Heavy Police Presence in Belgrade for EuroPride 2022
“We, as activists, will use our democratic right to civil disobedience and will protest,” said Belgrade EuroPride organizer Goran Miletic, after a court rejected their appeal to overturn the ban.
The interior ministry also barred any counter-protests from anti-LGBTQ activists but several far-right groups promised to rally and gather in front of churches.
The US embassy urged its citizens to avoid the event “because of the potential for unruly crowds, violence, as well as possible fines”.
“The Serbian government’s decision to cancel EuroPride is a shameful surrender to, and implicit sanctioning of, bigotry and threats of unlawful violence,” said Graeme Reid, director of the LGBTQ rights program at Human Rights Watch.
However one good sign in this drama story is that at least 15 members of the European Parliament announced that they will join in on the EuroPride march in a show of solidarity, although the route will be much shorter than originally planned.
Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic announced the ban after thousands took part in an anti-Pride demonstration in Belgrade. Those in attendance included biker gangs, Orthodox priests and far-right nationalists demanding the EuroPride rally be cancelled.
Article by: Paul Goldberg, Staff Writer
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