Italy’s family minister explains decision not to sign EU LGBT declaration

6 months ago 22

Italy was among nine EU countries that did not sign a declaration promoting European policies in favor of LGBT+ communities, sparking widespread protests within the country while the government described it as “unbalanced”.

Italy’s refusal to sign an EU declaration on the World Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia sparked a lot of controversy, both from the opposition parties and Italian citizens.

Alongside Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, Latvia, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia, Italy opted out of endorsing the document, which aims to protect LGBTQ+ rights and combat discrimination.

The declaration committed signatory states to implementing national strategies for LGBTQ+ people and appointing a new EU Commissioner for Equality following the upcoming EU parliamentary elections.

Over the weekend, Family Minister Eugenia Roccella defended the government’s position in an interview with Il Messaggero, stating that the document was “very unbalanced”.

“Everyone can choose who they want to love or have sexual relations with. But the freedom to ‘be who you want to be’ advocated in the document is an ideological constraint and a denial of reality because the reality of the body and sexual affiliation cannot be changed to the end,” said Roccella, who belongs to Fratelli d’Italia party led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

“I think the so-called gender binarism should continue to apply: There are women, and there are men. We want to preserve the anthropology on which parenthood and the continuity of humanity are based because if you abolish men and women, parenthood also changes, and you shouldn’t be surprised if no more children are conceived,” she added.

She clarified that while the government supports the inclusion of people undergoing gender reassignment and opposes transphobia, they reject efforts to change the fundamental human paradigm.

“They are trying to deny not only biology but also the body, which is based on the gender difference between men and women,” the minister concluded.

(Alessia Peretti | Euractiv.it)