When presenting the amendment, the Slovenian state secretary referred to rights that same-sex couples “should have had for a long time”.
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The Slovenian Parliament adopted an amendment on Tuesday, October 4 authorizing the marriage of same-sex couples and adoption, after a judgment by the Constitutional Court, making this country the first in Eastern Europe to legislate in this direction. The amendment to family law was voted by 48 deputies, 29 parliamentarians voted against and one abstained.
“With these changes, we are recognizing rights for same-sex couples that they should have had for a long time”, said Secretary of State Simon Maljevac in front of the deputies, during the presentation of the amendment. Slovenia, which emerged from the break-up of Yugoslavia, is the first formerly communist country to ratify this reform in Europe, most of its neighbors not allowing civil unions or same-sex marriages.
The main opposition party, the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS), criticized the Court’s decision and organized several rallies of opponents. A member of the European Union (EU) since 2004, this Alpine state of two million inhabitants joins 17 countries on the continent that have already legalized marriage for all.
In Hungary, discussing homosexuality in front of minors has even been punishable by a fine since the summer of 2021. In July, the highest court ruled that the law defining marriage as the only union of a man and a a woman discriminated against gay and lesbian couples.