GUARDIAN EUROPE: Lawmakers in the 300-seat parliament voted for the bill drafted by centre-right government despite church officials’ objections
Greece has become the world’s first Christian Orthodox nation to legalise same-sex marriage after the Athens parliament passed the landmark reform amid scenes of both jubilation and fury in the country.
In a rare display of parliamentary consensus, 176 MPs from across the political spectrum voted in favour of the bill. 76 rejected the reform while two abstained from the vote and 46 were not present.
Members of the LGBTQ+ community, many unable to contain their emotion, watched from the galleries above. “We have waited years for this,” said the prominent gay activist Stella Belia of legislation that will not only allow same-sex couples to exchange vows in civil ceremonies but adopt children. “It’s a historic moment. A lot of us weren’t sure it would ever come.”
The vote followed two days of heated debate – and weeks of public rancour – with the reform described by supporters as “bold” and “long overdue” and decried as “antisocial’ and “unchristian” by opponents including the powerful Orthodox church. » | Helena Smith in Athens | Friday, February 16, 2024
La Grèce légalise le mariage et l’adoption pour les couples de même sexe : Porté par le parti de droite au pouvoir, Nouvelle Démocratie, du premier ministre, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, le texte a été approuvé par 176 des 254 députés présents au Parlement à l’issue de deux jours de débat. »
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