Greek Lesbians
Set Marriage Milestone

A lesbian pair will be the first same-sex couple to marry in a Greek civil ceremony next week, taking advantage of a loophole in a 1982 law that fails to specify gender for civil unions. The couple will be married by the mayor of the Kessariani quarter of Athens, who belongs to the radical liberal Syriza party, the Agence France-Press reported Thursday.

Gay rights activists said that had the mayor refused to perform the ceremony, they would have petitioned the Greek Council of State.

The wedding announcement comes a day after Olke -- Greece's top gay rights group -- announced that they would appeal to the government for same-sex marriage and adoption rights for gays and lesbians, as well as denounce a proposed bill that would limit unions exclusively to heterosexuals. The activists said that Greece's marriage legislation violates the European human rights convention. The government currently opposes gay marriage and bars gays from its military. (The Advocate)