Church Can Still Speak Against Homosexuals

In a bill on fighting discrimination, the Church, in accordance to its doctrines, is allowed to oppose to homosexual love and marriage.

ZAGREB, CROATIA  - In the cabinet’s amendments of the law on fighting discrimination, which will be forwarded to the parliament on Friday, one of them concerns the position against homosexuals expressed by religious communities. According to the new bill, in fact, the religious communities’ opposition to homosexuality will not be considered discrimination if they are in line with their docrines.

The Croatian parliament sent the amendments to this law to be revisited, and one of its toughest opponents was the coalition partner of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), the Croatian Peasants Party (HSS). Deputy PM, Jadranka Kosor, said that, after a sitting, the cabinet, led by Ivo Sanader, moved to the parliament in order to discuss the controversial points with their coalition partners.

The Church can freely speak against “gays”  

Jadranka Kosor explained the journalists that the cabinet, the Croatian Episcopal Conference and the Church decided that an ombudsman will contact all religious communities which will be objected for violating the law due to their position, before issuing a report on the fight against discrimination.

If they settle that incitement against homosexual love or the adoption of children by homosexual couple is part of the religious doctrine, the ombudsman will have no basics to file charges against them. In this way, that religious community will not be punished for discrimination.

Kosor: The law does not open doors to homosexual marriages

Besides allowing the Church to speak against homosexuals, Kosor said that the new amendments do not enable homosexual marriages.

- The law will in no way enable homosexual marriages and does not enable adoption for homosexuals. The law does not open the smallest door to homosexual marriages. But the cabinet remains of the opinion that no one can be discriminated on generic basics – Kosor said.

The cabinet has adopted an amendment according to which the incitement to discrimination will be sanctioned, if committed intentionally.