Court Declares Illegality of Poznań Mayor’s Decision to Ban Polish Gay March
15/12/2005
By
Marcin Sobczyk (Warsaw Independent)
The ‘voivodeship’ administrative court in Poznan has ruled that the ban of the Equality March in November by Ryszard Grobelny, the mayor of Poznan, was illegal under the Polish and European laws.
The Equality March was supposed to promote the equality of minority groups in Poland. It took place despite the ban on November 19, and the police in Poznań briefly detained and interrogated 68 demonstrators, who protested against discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender, race, and disability.
The march was banned by the mayor of Poznań, who cited security reasons. A year earlier, a similar legal event led to street riots with far-right activists. The organizers of the march claimed that the mayor of Poznan, Ryszard Grobelny, caved in to the demands of far-right parties and the Catholic clergy, who believed the demonstration was immoral.
Grobelny’s decision was taken to court by the organizers of the march, whose claims were also supported by the Citizens’ Rights Ombudsman.
The Equality March was supposed to promote the equality of minority groups in Poland. It took place despite the ban on November 19, and the police in Poznań briefly detained and interrogated 68 demonstrators, who protested against discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender, race, and disability.
The march was banned by the mayor of Poznań, who cited security reasons. A year earlier, a similar legal event led to street riots with far-right activists. The organizers of the march claimed that the mayor of Poznan, Ryszard Grobelny, caved in to the demands of far-right parties and the Catholic clergy, who believed the demonstration was immoral.
Grobelny’s decision was taken to court by the organizers of the march, whose claims were also supported by the Citizens’ Rights Ombudsman.
