MP Inna Sovsun warns of threat to Ukraine's European integration due to weak stance on LGBT rights

MP Inna Sovsun has warned of the potential danger for Ukraine to follow the undemocratic path of Georgia if the country does not immediately stand up for LGBT rights. According to her, the changes in the draft of the new Civil Code, which limit the concept of family only to different-sex couples, are a worrying sign that contradicts the requirements of the European Union.

Inna Sovsun emphasized that the proposed changes in the Civil Code cancel the current provisions, which puts Ukraine at odds with the EU position. “And all this in conditions when there is an opposite requirement from the EU – to give an adequate opportunity to recognize same-sex families (and, by the way, the deadline for this requirement has already passed),” Forward quoted the MP as saying. She called these changes towards traditional values “not a trifle at all,” but a matter of “civilizational choice” for the country.

Sovsun cited Georgia as a negative example, where “the turn away from the European course also began with the restriction of the rights of LGBT people.” In her opinion, Ukraine should not repeat this path, jeopardizing its European perspective.

The MP also said that she had discussed this problem with the speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, Ruslan Stefanchuk, who is the main initiator of the draft of the new Civil Code. This discussion emphasizes the seriousness and relevance of the raised issue for the legislative field of Ukraine.

We shall remind you that earlier the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) called for a complete ban on the so-called “conversion therapy”. This ban covers a wide range of practices, including religious and pastoral forms of assistance aimed at changing sexual orientation or gender identity. In addition, PACE urged its 46 member states to strengthen the promotion of LGBT ideology among children and to criminalize the use of “conversion therapy” in the areas of health, education and religion.