Press release by the Lithuanian Gay League (LGL)
2 December 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

On Tuesday the Lithuanian Parliament started discussing the draft Law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information and began to argue on the issue of sexual minorities.

Even thought the purpose of the law is to protect minors against the detrimental effect of public information, the focus of the discussion finally turned out to be the deliberations on whether homosexuality is to be considered inborn or acquired. Some participants of the discussion suggested that homosexuals need to undergo medical treatment, while their opponents kept accusing the authors of this idea of homophobia.

Currently the Parliament is discussing the amendments as prepared by the working group formed by the President Dalia Grybauskaitė to the new reading of the Law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information, which has been approved by the Parliament, but has not come into force yet.

The key object of parliamentary arguments became the amendment suggested by the working group formed by the President regarding the elimination from the law of the ban to promote homosexual relations. The said working group suggested replacing the provision highly criticized by the defenders of human rights with the ban to promote sexual relations among minors.

“Why is the rotting European Union so much afraid of this law? Because we are one of the few countries that is still able to withstand the attacks of homosexuals”, said Egidijus Klumbys representing “Order and Justice”.

The said Member of Parliament claimed that “it is high time to hold a referendum in Lithuania with the aim to ban the promotion of homosexual lifestyle”. “We have to make our position crystal clear“, said Mr Klumbys.

Members of the Conservative Party Gintaras Songaila and Kazimieras Uoka urged the Members of Parliament to reject the reading of the law suggested by the President and to stick to the previously approved reading of the law providing for the ban of the promotion of homosexual, bisexual relations and polygamy. Mr Songaila claimed that homosexual individuals should be subjected to medical treatment and stated that in his opinion homosexuality is acquired rather than inborn. He admitted that the law is discriminatory towards homosexuals, but he called it “positive discrimination”.

Member of Social Democratic Party Aušrinė Marija Pavilionienė said that “some Members of Parliament must be haunted by this phenomenon (of homosexuality)”.

On Wednesday after continued discussion the Seimas approved amendment proposed by member of the Conservative Party Gintaras Songaila according to which public information which encourages homosexual, bisexual relations or polygamy will be recognized as having the detrimental effect on minors.

This proposal was unanimously supported by Labour Party, Order and Justice Party and fraction United Lithuania, also by half of the Conservative Party members. Majority of Social Democrats abstained.

After approval of these amendments draft of the Law changes essentially, so it is returned to discuss it over to the Committee on Education, Science and Culture.
If at discussion stage draft of the law changes essentially, the Speaker can suggest amend the draft and postpone it. If the Seimas approves this suggestion, procedure is repeated from the discussion of the draft of the law in the primary committee, and this opportunity while discussing draft of the law can be used only once.

After approval of the Seimas, the draft of the Law is returned to the Committee and will be discussed once again.