Greece Prime Minister promises to legalize same-sex marriage

Author: Molly Sprayregen

The Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, recently vowed to legalize same-sex marriage during an interview with Bloomberg.

“Same-sex marriage will happen at some point and it’s part of our strategy,” he said. “Greek society is much more ready and mature.”

Greece currently allows civil unions but has not yet achieved full marriage equality. Nevertheless, this year it ranked number 13 in LGBTQ+-friendliness out of 49 countries in the annual index put out by LGBTQ+ advocacy organization ILGA-Europe. Topping the list were the countries of Malta, Belgium, and Denmark.

Greece’s ranking was in part due to Mitsotakis’s championing of LGBTQ+ rights, as well as the fact that the country banned conversion therapy for minors in May 2022.

Last July, Greece’s parliament also passed a law banning “sex-normalizing” surgeries for babies born intersex. The law bans procedures for children under the age of 15 unless parents can obtain a court decision. 

According to Equaldex, Greece has also passed LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination laws and allows legal gender changes without surgery, though its parenting laws have a long way to go. A 2022 poll found that 51.7% of Greeks support same-sex marriage, and 69% support the Church’s right to refuse to perform them.

Topping ILGA-Europe’s rankings for most LGBTQ+-friendly countries are Malta, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, and Iceland. The bottom five least LGBTQ+-friendly countries on the list were Belarus, Russia, Armenia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan.

Actual Story on LGBTQ Nation
Author: Molly Sprayregen