Zagreb Pride Activists Protested in Front of Macedonian Embassy

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Activists and supporters of the Zagreb Pride association held protests last Saturday, October 27, 2012, in front of the Macedonian Embassy, in Zvonimirova Street in Zagreb, against the grave violations of rights of LGBTIQ persons in Macedonia, who are subjected to public and media lynch.

Activists carried banners in Macedonian, Albanian and English (Photo Zagreb Pride

Zagreb Pride activists emphasized that the LGBT persons in Macedonia find themselves in a difficult situation and that the association receives daily information about violations of human and civil rights of LGBT activists, attacks on safe spaces for LGBT persons, hate-speech and threats directed at the LGBT community by “unknown perpetrators”.

Last Wednesday, October 24, 2012, the new LGBTi Support Centre (it was opened the previous evening, on October 23), was found stoned and vandalized with its street windows broken. At the same time, several thematic portals that report on LGBT-related issues, reported a series of attacks on LGBT activists in Skopje, news that weren’t confirmed to this date.

Zagreb Pride also notes the homophobic incident involving the Minister of Labour and Social Policy Spiro Ristovski, who equalized the struggle for greater visibility and protection of LGBT persons from discrimination with “demands for legalization of same-sex marriage”, which his government “would not allow”, as well as the shocking front-page of “Večer” daily of October 15, which insults the dignity of the LGBT persons and contributes to the prevailing atmosphere of public lynch.

The protest in Zagreb proceeded without incidents, with the exception from passing cars sounding their horns. Since it can be interpreted as a sign of support, Zagreb Pride proposed that one of the banners for some future protests should ask the motorists to “Sound the Horn for Equality”.

Zagreb Pride announced that a series of similar protests were planned in the other cities in the region, the first taking place today, October 30, in Belgrade. (Source: H-alter.hr/Zagreb Pride)