Thousands march in Ukraine for LGBT rights, security

Some 7,000 individuals gathered in Ukrainian capital on Sunday for the annual March for Equality to assist the rights of the nation’s LGBT group.
Equipped with colourful costumes and rainbow flags, the gang marched down the central streets of Kyiv, some carrying banners studying “Fight for right!” Participants introduced eight calls for for Ukrainian authorities, together with the legalization of civil partnerships for LGBT individuals and the creation of legal guidelines towards LGBT hate crimes.
People participate within the annual Gay Pride parade, underneath the safety of riot police in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Sept. 19, 2021. (AP)
“We’ve grown tired of waiting for change and enduring systematic intimidation, pressure, disruption of peaceful events, attacks on activists and the LGBT community,” the marchers mentioned in a press release. “We demand changes here and now, as we want to live freely in our own country.”
The march was guarded by police, who sought to stop clashes with far-right teams that try to disrupt the occasion yearly. Ukraine’s human rights ombudswoman Lyudmyla Denisova urged radical teams to chorus from violence.
“We’re different, but we’re equal,” Denisova mentioned. “Ukraine’s constitution has declared all people equal in their rights from birth, regardless of any characteristics, including sexual orientation and gender identity.”

Several hundred activists opposing the march held their very own rally in a park in Kyiv. No clashes have been reported.
Ukraine repealed legal legal responsibility for homosexuality in 1991. In 2015, Ukraine’s labor legal guidelines had been amended to ban discrimination of LGBT individuals within the office.
However, conservative teams within the largely Orthodox Christian nation oppose LGBT rights and members of far-right organizations commonly assault teams and occasions linked to the LGBT group. LGBT rights teams say Ukrainian police typically ignore homophobic or transphobic motives of the assaults, classifying them as hooliganism.