Conservative group protests US support for Prague Pride
08/08/2011
Submitted by
ILGA-Europe
Original article: http://praguemonitor.com/2011/08/...group-protests-us-support-gay-parade
Prague, Aug 7 (CTK) - The Czech conservative group D.O.S.T. yesterday protested against support from U.S. Ambassador to Prague Norman Eisen to the Prague Pride homosexual festival.
Prague Pride will be held next week, culminating with a parade on Saturday. The festival will take place in Prague for the first time.
Thirteen embassies seated in Prague on Friday backed the homosexual event. The support action was initiated by Britain and joined by Austria, Germany, Estonia, Spain and Sweden, among others.
"We express our solidarity with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities in the Czech Republic, supporting their right to use this occasion to march together peacefully and lawfully, in order to raise awareness of the specific issues that affect them," the embassies said in a joint statement.
Former Czech foreign minister Jan Kohout said similar joint statements of Western ambassadors are unusual in the European Union but he added that in the so-called third countries they are rather common.
D.O.S.T. addressed a letter to Eisen, resolutely protesting against support to Prague Pride. The letter says the demands homosexuals raise to Czech public considerably exceed mere tolerance.
The group writes that it regrets that Eisen supports pressure groups whose ideology is similar to social engineering and Marxism-Leninism.
With respect to the legacy of President Ronald Reagan and good Czech-U.S. relations, we cannot agree with Eisen's support to Prague Pride, D.O.S.T. leaders say in the letter.
The group also criticises the fact that Prague Pride is held under the auspices of Prague Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda (senior government Civic Democrats, ODS). It calls on Svoboda to withdraw his patronage.
The same stance was already expressed by Petr Hajek, deputy head of the Czech Presidential Office, who also labelled homosexuality a "deviation."
The opposition Social Democrats (CSSD) called on President Vaclav Klaus to distance himself from his aide's words but Klaus defended Hajek.
D.O.S.T. is a group promoting Christian roots, patriotism and traditional family and rejecting political correctness. It is headed by Ladislav Batora, who was widely criticised for running as a candidate for the far-right National Party in the past.
Batora was recently made the head of the personnel section of the Education Ministry, which led to further criticism. Education Minister Josef Dobes (junior ruling Public Affairs, VV) sharply rejected this criticism. He said Batora is no racist but a dutiful person, a patriot and a conservative Roman-Catholic.
Klaus also backed Batora some time ago.
Prague, Aug 7 (CTK) - The Czech conservative group D.O.S.T. yesterday protested against support from U.S. Ambassador to Prague Norman Eisen to the Prague Pride homosexual festival.
Prague Pride will be held next week, culminating with a parade on Saturday. The festival will take place in Prague for the first time.
Thirteen embassies seated in Prague on Friday backed the homosexual event. The support action was initiated by Britain and joined by Austria, Germany, Estonia, Spain and Sweden, among others.
"We express our solidarity with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities in the Czech Republic, supporting their right to use this occasion to march together peacefully and lawfully, in order to raise awareness of the specific issues that affect them," the embassies said in a joint statement.
Former Czech foreign minister Jan Kohout said similar joint statements of Western ambassadors are unusual in the European Union but he added that in the so-called third countries they are rather common.
D.O.S.T. addressed a letter to Eisen, resolutely protesting against support to Prague Pride. The letter says the demands homosexuals raise to Czech public considerably exceed mere tolerance.
The group writes that it regrets that Eisen supports pressure groups whose ideology is similar to social engineering and Marxism-Leninism.
With respect to the legacy of President Ronald Reagan and good Czech-U.S. relations, we cannot agree with Eisen's support to Prague Pride, D.O.S.T. leaders say in the letter.
The group also criticises the fact that Prague Pride is held under the auspices of Prague Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda (senior government Civic Democrats, ODS). It calls on Svoboda to withdraw his patronage.
The same stance was already expressed by Petr Hajek, deputy head of the Czech Presidential Office, who also labelled homosexuality a "deviation."
The opposition Social Democrats (CSSD) called on President Vaclav Klaus to distance himself from his aide's words but Klaus defended Hajek.
D.O.S.T. is a group promoting Christian roots, patriotism and traditional family and rejecting political correctness. It is headed by Ladislav Batora, who was widely criticised for running as a candidate for the far-right National Party in the past.
Batora was recently made the head of the personnel section of the Education Ministry, which led to further criticism. Education Minister Josef Dobes (junior ruling Public Affairs, VV) sharply rejected this criticism. He said Batora is no racist but a dutiful person, a patriot and a conservative Roman-Catholic.
Klaus also backed Batora some time ago.
