Lichtenstein Approves Civil Unions

Voters in the tiny nation of Lichtenstein have approved a version of civil unions for LGBT couples.

Gay and lesbian couples will receive the same tax, inheritance and welfare rights as come with marriage following a referendum in which 68 percent supported the law, Swiss news agency ATS reported. Parliament had all but adopted the legislation earlier this year but its critics, the group Vox Populi, called for a public poll. The new law is based on the Swiss model which came into effect in 2007 and therefore excludes the right to adopt children. "With this clear 'yes' to partnerships, Liechtenstein... is putting an end to the current discrimination faced by same-sex couples," ATS quoted Prime Minister Klaus Tschuetscher as saying.

Lichtenstein has a population of about 35,000.

Europe Vs. America

(Source)

Ten Centuries In Five Minutes

Europe According To Gay Men

More amusing stereotype mapping here.

BARCELONA: One Million March For Catalan Independence

Spain's constitutional court declared on Friday that there is no legal basis to consider its Catalonia region an autonomous nation, sending over one million protesters into the streets of Barcelona yesterday.

The verdict came after four years of debate in which conservative and liberal judges locked horns over whether the charter went beyond the limits of Spain's system of granting varying degrees of self-rule to its 17 regions. The Catalan region's statute of autonomy, which was earlier approved by the Spanish parliament and endorsed by Catalan voters in a 2006 referendum, gave the regional parliament enhanced powers in taxation and judicial matters as well as more control over airports, ports and immigration. The court approved in June most of Catalonia's statute of autonomy but changed some of the most controversial points, drawing the anger of the government of the nationalist-minded region. The statute has the support of most political parties in Catalonia, where a sizeable minority would like to see the wealthy region, which has its own language and distinct culture, break away from Spain.

According to the above-linked article, Catalonia has only 7% of Spain's population but represents more than a quarter of its economy.

Standing Room

Europe's Ryanair is about to begin testing on their "vertical seating" plane layout. They plan to remove ten rows of seats from the rear of their 250 planes and replace them with fifteen rows of the depicted style.

Budget airline Ryanair is planning to revolutionise air travel by introducing flights where passengers stand up rather than sit down - from £4 per ticket.The airline's flamboyant chief executive Michael O'Leary said safety testing for 'vertical seating' will take place next year when the airline will also introduce a £1 charge to use the lavatory. The budget airline wants to charge travellers for using the toilet in order to 'change passenger behaviour' and fund the cheap 'standing-room only' tickets.

Aviation safety regulators take a dim view of the idea and say they have no current plan to legalize vertical flying. Ryanair says the standing room tickets will initially only be available on flights of less than one hour. Would you be willing to fly like this if it was extra cheap?

European Court Of Human Rights: There's No Right To Same-Sex Marriage

Europe's top human rights court has ruled that there is no inherent right to same-sex marriage.

The Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rejected an appeal by two Austrian men who said their country’s refusal to allow same-sex marriage violated the right to marry and prohibition of discrimination in European rights law. The ECHR is part of the Council of Europe, which promotes democracy and the rule of law among its 47 member states. Its rulings are binding on Council members since they have signed the European Convention on Human Rights. “The court observed that, among Council of Europe member states, there is no consensus regarding same-sex marriage,” the ECHR said in a statement on Thursday. Only 7 of the Council’s 47 members have approved same-sex marriage. “The court underlined that national authorities were best placed to assess and respond to the needs of society in this field, given that marriage had deep-rooted social and cultural connotations differing largely from one society to another.”

The court's decision stated that while gay couples could not be denied marriage purely on a procreational basis, that "still did not impose an obligation on states to grant same-sex couples access to marriage."

Sweden Ranked Most Gay-Friendly Nation In Europe, Russia Finishes Last

The IGLA-Europe (European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association) has ranked Sweden as the continent's most gay-friendly nation. Via Rex Wockner @ Pink Paper:

The new edition of the group's Rainbow Europe Country Index says Sweden is the only European nation that passes all the group's tests in areas such as anti-discrimination protections, recognition of same-sex partnerships and parenting, hate-crime and hate-speech laws, plus equal age-of-consent laws. The index will not start tracking transgender issues until next year. "Our congratulations to (Sweden) for making sure its legislation and practices are fully inclusive and respectful of human rights of LGB people," said ILGA-Europe board chair Martin K.I. Christensen.

Russia and Ukraine were ranked last.

Germany Wins Eurovision 2010

I sort of called it back on March 28th, although I really wanted Lithuania to win.

Eurovision Finals Live Stream

The 2010 Eurovision finals are underway in Oslo. The official Eurovision live stream requires some funky plug-in I've never heard of, so hopefully this feed from Bulgaria will work for most of you.

UPDATE: Show's over, folks.

SLOVAKIA: Skinheads Attack, Force Cancellation Of First Gay Pride Parade

Slovakia's first ever gay pride parade was canceled today after skinheads attacked the participants with rocks, eggs and a tear gas grenade. Organizers are blaming police for not providing adequate protection. Eight neo-Nazis were arrested and there were no serious injuries.

Members of the neo-Nazi group Slovenská Pospolitosť attacked the participants at a pre-parade rally for LGBT rights. A tear gas canister thrown by one of the approximately 80 neo-Nazis interrupted the rally, attended by 500 people, while the extremists also were throwing eggs at the participants, the Sme daily reported. Two rally participants who were carrying a rainbow flag, the symbol of the parade, were attacked by the neo-Nazis at Hviezdoslav Square in Bratislava. They attacked the flag barriers with their fists in the face, the SITA newswire reported. The rally and parade had been announced long in advance and observers said that the police had enough time to prepare for the security and safety of the parade participants.

“Instead of the parade of pride, Slovakia has experienced a day of shame,” wrote Sme’s deputy editor-in-chief Lukáš Fila in his commentary suggesting that the attack by the neo-Nazis against the participants shows a failure by the state. Fila states that if the state was unable to secure order at an event which had been announced months in advance and about which all media had been reporting and to which foreign diplomats had confirmed their presence, then in what other areas are the police incapable of securing public order?

Similar incidents marred gay pride events earlier this month in Belarus and Lithuania. Below, Slovakian police arrest one of the anti-gay rioters.

ITALY: Gay Marriage Ruling Due

Italy's Constitutional Court is expected to rule this week on an appeal from two gay couples who were denied the right to marry. The decision may come as soon as tomorrow. The Vatican has pressured politicians to keep the issue from coming to a vote, but a positive ruling from the nation's highest court could side-step legislative approval.

RELATED: Portugal's Constitutional Court signed off last week on a bill legalizing same-sex marriage. The president must now sign or veto the bill. If he vetoes it, Parliament is widely expected to simply pass it again, which, under Portugal's Constitution, forces presidential assent.

ALSO RELATED: Seven countries around the world presently offer full same-sex marriage rights: Canada, Spain, the Netherlands, South Africa, Belgium, Norway, and Sweden. Many other nations, most of them in western Europe, offer civil unions or domestic partnerships, often with nearly the same legal rights as opposite marriage.

Green Light For Gay Marriage In Portugal

Portugal's Constitutional Court has approved a marriage equality bill recently passed by the nation's legislature. The bill only needs the signature of the president to become law.

Portugal's Socialist-controlled Parliament, led by Prime Minister Jose Socrates, approved the gay marriage bill on February 11. The president still has the option of vetoing the legislation, but Socrates has said he is prepared to overturn the veto. The Vatican has vociferously opposed laws that grant gay couples the right to marry. Pope Benedict has called for the ouster of Socialists in Spain who approved a gay marriage law in 2005, but the church's opposition in the Catholic stronghold of Portugal has been muted. However, Benedict is widely expected to criticize the bill when he visits Portugal next month.

President Silva opposes marriage equality, but his expected veto will likely be overridden.