Latvian president
Vaira Vike-Freiberga on Wednesay signed into law a
constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union of a
man and a woman, making the northern European nation
one of the first in Europe to have an antigay clause
in its constitution. The announcement came shortly
after a meeting between the president and Prime Minister
Aigars Kalvitis of the Latvia First Party.
In a statement,
the president pointed out that the change to the
constitution does not alter anything, as marriage was
already defined in civil law as being the union
of a man and a woman. "If one had in mind
that by adding such a requirement to the constitution it
will guarantee that it will stay there for ever and
all time, then it is, of course, an illusion--a
wrong hope," she said.
Vike-Freiberga
then noted that the Latvian parliament can change the
amendment whenever it wants. "Honestly speaking, as
president I cannot clearly see the benefit to the
nation of this amendment. However, since it does not
indeed change anything in substance for the better
nor for the worse, I don't see any reason not to sign
it," the president said. "I would also
like to stress that this constitutional amendment in
no way introduces any discriminatory requirements for gays
and lesbians."
Vike-Freiberga
went on to comment on the debate in parliament.
"The debates which took place in [parliament]
when discussing this amendment, in my view, very often
demonstrated very explicit intolerance and explicit
homophobia," she said. "People can have their
own religious beliefs, their own understanding of what
is sin and what is not, what is appropriate and what
is not appropriate behavior. However, as president, I
would like to remind [you] that in a democratic nation, as
we are, private life is separated from the public
sphere, and what people do privately is no
one's business unless it contradicts our laws."
Some gay rights
activists have vowed to challenge the amendment in the
European Court of Human Rights. Latvia, a former Soviet
republic that joined the European Union last year,
sees itself as a progressive democracy enjoying one of
Europe's fastest-growing economies, but many people
retain conservative views about homosexuality.
(Advocate.com)
