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<p class="MsoNormal">Monday 21 March, the winners of the EU Journalist Awards 2010 were announced, and the third prize went to Rasa Navickaitė from Lithuania for her article on the experiences of same sex couples raising families in Lithuania. </p>

<p class="MsoNormal">Today, the European Parliament adopted a resolution urging Lithuanian Parliament to reject proposed amendments to the country’s Code of Administrative Offences introducing an offence of ‘promotion of homosexual relations’ punishable with a fine of €580 to €2,900.</p>

<p>ILGA-Europe will closely follow tomorrow’s plenary session in the European Parliament, where proposed homophobic legislative amendments in Lithuania will be discussed. </p><p>Read more about the developments in Lithuania and how you can follow the debate.</p>

<p>Dalia Grybauskaitė, President of Lithuania, today commented on a legislative proposal to criminalise ‘public promotion of homosexual relationships’ due to be debated by Lithuanian Parliament in the next few weeks. </p>

<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">Please find below a letter ALDE (The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe) group of the European Parliament wrote to Viviane Reding, European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, regarding a proposal to criminalise 'propaganda of homosexual relationships in public' in Lithuania.</p>

<p><i>Press release from LGL - Lithuanian Gay League.</i></p>

<p><i>Statement from Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg:</i></p><p>Gay pride events planned this spring have met with obstacles yet again. Meetings and marches to promote equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) persons have been banned or subject to threats and violence in Moscow, Bratislava, Vilnius and Chisinau. </p>

<p>Representatives of lesbian, gay, bisexuals, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) organisations from various EU member states, who currently meet in Vilnius for ILGA-Europe’s EU Network, wholeheartedly welcome the decision of the Lithuanian Supreme Administrative Court to uphold the permission by the Vilnius Mayor for the Baltic Pride March for Equality to go ahead tomorrow as originally planned.</p>

<p>Viviane Reding, EU Commisioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, addressed the participants of the international conference in prior of the Baltic Pride 2010 in a video message.</p><p>Watch the video here.</p>

<p>Baltic Pride, the 8th May pride event organised by the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) community and supported by international actors, saw its permit temporarily suspended yesterday following complaints to the Public Prosecutor’s office.</p>

<p>Joint media release by ILGA-Europe, the European Parliament's Intergroup on LGBT Rights and Amnesty International</p>

<p> Read the Media Release from Council of Europe Thursday the 22th of October 2009.</p>

<p>Thursday the 17th of September, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the Lithuanian Law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effects of Public Information. It a clear signal to the Lithuanian authorities and is an adding voice to the resistance against the homophobic law.</p>

<p>This Wednesday the 16th of September 2009, the European Parliament will discuss the situation in Lithuania regarding recently adopted homophobic legislation.</p>

<p>Equinet and the Lithuanian Equal Opportunities Ombudsman urge the European and Lithuanian authorities to take necessary steps to ensure the protection of the basic rights of LGBT people in Lithuania.</p>

<p>Amnesty International has today sent out a press release regarding the news of the Lithuanian Parliament is moving to criminalize homosexual relation in public spaces.</p>

<p>The Lithuanian parliament, Seimas, adopted the Law on the Protection of Minors Against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information. The law bans any positive information about homosexuality and bisexuality. It equates homosexuality and bisexuality to other ‘detrimental effect on minors’ such as display of dead or cruelly mutilated body, information that causes fear or horror or encourages suicide. </p>

<p>The first Baltic Friendship Days are taking place in Riga between 15 and 17 May 2009: <a href="http://www.balticpride.eu/" target="_blank">www.balticpride.eu</a>. The event is organised jointly by Lithuanian Gay League, Tolerant Youth association (Lithuania), Latvian Alliance of LGBT People and Their Friends MOZAIKA and Estonian LGBT Youth Association. </p>

<p>by Lithuanian Gay League (LGL)</p>

<p>Lithuanian MP and former social minister Irena Degutiene, a member of the Homeland Union (Conservatives) will reportedly begin collecting signatures in January as part of a drive to amend the constitution so that same-sax marriages will be banned. </p>

<p>On 30 September, around 50 people gathered on the Europe Square in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius to protest against possible gay pride march and ‘spread’ of homosexuality in Lithuania. All major Christian denominations expressed their support for this demonstration.</p>

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