The Greek Parliament endorsed gay marriage and the adoption of minors by same-sex couples this Thursday, a move pushed by the conservative Government despite strong opposition from the influential Orthodox Church.
The reform was comfortably passed with 176 votes for, 76 against, and 2 abstentions. This was made possible thanks to the support of several opposition parties, as some of the 158 deputies from the ruling party, the conservative New Democracy (ND), voted against it, abstained, or left the Chamber.
Greece is now the 20th European country and the first Orthodox Christian nation to legalize same-sex marriages.
The parliamentary vote followed an address by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who drafted the bill. It received support from multiple left-wing opposition parties.
However, Mitsotakis faced resistance from the most conservative faction of his New Democracy (ND) party, who opposed the reform allowing two people of the same sex to enter into a civil marriage, a right previously reserved for heterosexual couples.
The Prime Minister gave ND legislators the freedom to vote as they wished.
Legalizing gay marriage in Greece is “a watershed moment for human rights”, according to Mitsotakis.
“This is a watershed moment for human rights, reflecting modern Greece: a progressive and democratic nation, deeply committed to European values,” the Greek Prime Minister stated on the X network.
Since 2015, Greece has permitted a civil union outside of traditional norms, although it doesn’t provide the same legal protections as civil marriage.
Last year, marriage equality became a key component of Mitsotakis’ second term and was portrayed as “a significant step towards equality for all citizens.”
Its approval, he stated, would also help to put an end to irrational legal and emotional situations.
“Same-sex parents will finally be able to sleep peacefully at night” as they will be “free from the fear that if something happens to them, their child will end up in an institution,” he declared when presenting the reform to the Council of Ministers at the end of January.
Previously, only the biological parent had rights over the child. If the biological parent died, the State would strip the other parent of custody.
And children with two parents could not obtain identity documents, as the mother’s name is required in the civil registry.
For 46-year-old Konstantinos Androulakis, who is married to Michael and the father of two children aged 6 and 11, Greece is witnessing “a historic moment.”
“It’s a significant leap forward,” says this London consultant who traveled to Greece for the occasion, hoping that “LGBT+ rights will continue to improve” in the country.
However, some are disappointed that the bill does not allow surrogacy for homosexual couples.
Most of the recent debate in the country has been about homoparenting.
In a predominantly Orthodox country, The Church has been completely against the project from the outset.
“Children instinctively need and have the right to be raised by a male father and a female mother,” the Holy Synod claims, having sent a letter to the deputies.
A sermon was also read in all the churches in the country on Sunday, February 4.
