5,000 people demonstrate in Latvia for LGBT rights and civil unions

Some 5,000 protesters gathered in a historic Riga park after marching through the center of the capital latvian to mark the weekend of LGBT Pride and in solidarity with Ukraine.

The attendees, mostly young people, carried rainbow flags and some Ukrainian flags and chanted slogans in favor of the Baltic country adopting a bill to legalize homosexual civil unions, which is blocked in parliament.

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Riga Mayor Martins Stakis addressed the protesters and affirmed the importance of choosing the “right values” which he defined as “europeans” Y “westerners”, which contrasted with those seen “beyond the eastern border” referring to Russia.

Stakis, elected as part of the liberal platform for Development (APar), which he later left due to internal disputes, is the first Riga councilor to speak out in public at an event of the LGBT pride since these started in 2005, something most Latvian politicians have avoided doing until now.

However, on this occasion political representatives such as the Minister of Health, Daniels Pavluts, and the Member of the European Parliament Ivars Ijabs, both from APar, also participated in the march.

People attend ‘The Walk for Freedom’ during Riga Pride, in Riga, Latvia. (EFE/EPA/TOMS KALNINS/)

The police, who deployed a strong device around the route of the demonstration, reported that one person was arrested for trying to interrupt the event and for disobeying the authorities.

A handful of counter-protesters lined the route with banners in English and Latvian warning that “sin will destroy you,” while rainbow flags hung from some windows and people waved from balconies.

Kristina Garina, a human rights activist LGBT who helped organize the march, explained in statements to Efe that the atmosphere has changed a lot since the first demonstrations in 2005 and 2006 were met with violent incidents and the hostility of a large number of counter-demonstrators.

“This is becoming more and more like a normal celebration and a carnival,” a participant in the march told Efe, after which there was a concert with local music groups in Vermanes Park, where food stalls were set up. and drink and various organizations.

Two political parties, the liberal APar and the Progressive Social Democrats, which are also part of the coalition that governs Riga, showed their presence with stalls in the park.

Riga Mayor Martins Stakis (R) attends ‘The Walk for Freedom’ during Riga Pride, in Riga, Latvia. (EFE/EPA/TOMS KALNINS/)

Earlier this month, the Latvian parliament or Saeima twice blocked a law to legalize same-sex civil unions, after one of the governing coalition partners absented himself from the vote to prevent a sufficient quorum for approve the draft.

According to a 2021 survey, public opinion in Latvia is divided, with 42% favoring couples LGBT can access civil unions, while 43% are against.

Source: Elcomercio