Czech Republic government back a draft bill which would see same-sex marriage legalised

24th June 2018

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In April, a poll found that 75% of people in the Czech Republic supported the legalisation of same-sex marriage, with only 19% opposed to it.

And now, the Czech government is seemingly acting on those statistics as on Friday, 46 lawmakers introduced a bill which would see same-sex marriage legalised in the country. The bill isn’t just seeking to introduce same-sex marriages, but it also aims to give LGBTQ couples the same widow and adoption rights that heterosexuals have.

However, at the same time, 37 lawmakers introduced a rival bill calling on marriage to be constitutionally defined as between one man and one woman. Thankfully, as it’s calling for a constitutional change it’s far less likely to succeed than the bill calling for same-sex marriages to be legalised.

In the Czech political system, a constitutional change requires 60% of the Czech parliament to vote in favour. Meanwhile, a bill that is only seeking to change the law, just requires a normal majority vote.

Speaking to iDNES, Lucie Zachariáš, a lawyer for a pro marriage equality group in the country, said: “We are happy that the government has consistently spoken about the proposal to change the Civil Code and promote marriage for gays and lesbians.

“It is practically the whole of Western Europe, and we have the chance to be the first post-communist country to take it.”

She then added: “”In recent days, besides the wave of support for gay and lesbian relationships, there have been voices that worry about a classical family.

“We would like to emphasize that there is nothing in countries where marriage has been enacted for anything that would endanger heterosexual marriage: as we say in We are fair – it will not hurt most, a minority will help.

“We know that there is still a long way to go to the Chamber of Deputies, Senate to the President. That’s why the government’s consensus is fulfilling us with such optimism.”