Euro Parliament calls for gay freedom of movement

The European Parliament on Nov. 25 adopted a resolution calling on European Union member nations “to ensure freedom of movement for EU citizens and their families, including both registered partnerships and marriages” and “to avoid all kinds of discrimination on any ground, including sexual orientation.”

MEPs also called for EU-level anti-hate-crime legislation, citing “growing intolerance within the EU.”

The co-presidents of the Parliament’s Intergroup on LGBT Rights, Michael Cashman and Ulrike Lunacek, called the resolution “a step toward equality.”

“The European Parliament has just sent a clear message that member states need to ensure the freedom of movement of all families and recognize unions between all EU citizens, regardless of their sexual orientation,” they said. “The text goes in the direction of an EU-wide recognition of all unions contracted in member states … but we will need to keep up the pressure on EU institutions and member states in the coming years to fully recognize same-sex unions — only then will we have genuine equality.”

By Rex Wockner