CROATIA: Croats express mixed reactions to the outcome of Sunday's referendum which introduces a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage

Record ID: 860486

  • Title: CROATIA: Croats express mixed reactions to the outcome of Sunday's referendum which introduces a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage
  • Date: 2nd December 2013
  • Summary: STATUE OF MARY IN FRONT OF CATHEDRAL STATUE AND CATHEDRAL
  • Embargoed: 17th December 2013 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Croatia
  • City:
  • Country: Croatia
  • Topics: Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA4FFN3YKYN3T0EU8XKXAB1ONNB
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  • Story Text: Croats voted in favour of defining marriage in the constitution as a "union of man and woman" on Sunday (December 1), a move initiated by Roman Catholic groups, but criticised by opponents as discrimination against homosexuals.
    Almost 66 percent of those who voted in the referendum endorsed the initiative, launched by the Catholic group "In the Name of the Family", but turnout was only 37 percent and many interviewed in the capital Zagreb said they were disappointed with the outcome.

    "We have gone back not 20, but 50 years. Instead of going forward we are going back and the worst thing, really strange thing, is that there are so many young people who are prone to such backward thinking", said Zagreb resident Branka Gvozdic.

    "Only the most developed parts of Croatia, Istria and Kvarner voted against and the backwards areas all voted in favour, that's it. It is a well known fact that the people in Istria and Kvarner are clever, in the rest of the country the big majority of the people are fools," said Vlado Knezevic, referring to the two traditionally liberal counties on Croatia's northern Adriatic coast.
    The "In the Name of the Family" group had gathered over 740,000 signatures in support of the referendum, forcing parliament to call the vote.
    The Social Democrat-led government disagreed with the referendum's demand, but the outcome was no surprise in a morally conservative country where 90 percent of the population of 4.4 million say they are Catholic.
    The Church wholeheartedly backed the initiative, which sought to define marriage in the constitution rather than law so that its status can only be changed by a two-thirds majority in parliament.

    "This outcome reflects the majority opinion and their traditional upbringing and world views", said pensioner Alojz Jembrih.
    The campaign for the referendum began last year after the government introduced sex education in schools, despite protests from Catholic groups.
    It then hinted that it might grant same-sex couples the right to be treated as if they were married, with next-of-kin status and inheritance rights, albeit without allowing them to formally marry.
    Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic had called the referendum "sad and pointless", but said the government would pass a bill giving same-sex couples more rights in the coming weeks.
    While gay pride marches have become routine in Croatia, same-sex couples still face many practical challenges.
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