Legalization of gay marriage sparks debates

TIRANA, Aug 2 – Religious communities in Albania reacted harshly to the proposed legalization of gay marriage, branding it as unacceptable and harmful to society.
Last week on Wednesday, Prime Minister Sali Berisha announced that the government had sent the draft law to the parliament.
Catholic priests argued that marriage of two people of the same gender is not acceptable, warning that if such a law is adopted the institution of the family will be at risk, as gay couples will want to adopt children.
The initiative was also condemned by the Muslim community, which describes it as a sin in which parliamentary members should not participate.
The newly re-elected prime minister of Albania, a secular country with a majority-Muslim population, is proposing the legalization of unions between same-sex couples. “A law that could provoke debates and reactions aims to put an end to discrimination and will allow civil unions between same-sex persons,” Prime Minister Sali Berisha said in a cabinet meeting last week.
Berisha introduced legislation to grant same-sex couples the right to marry within the borders of Albania. This surprising move comes within a nation which does not have a visible LGBT Community, and where prejudice against same-sex couples can be fairly high. Berisha stated that he believed that this was an issue of ending discrimination. Berisha has been portrayed as a “family values” politician in the past, and he is largely considered a conservative.
Reaction from the few visible LGBT Community spokespeople has been both of surprise and of elation. In a press release, the Alliance Against Discrimination Against Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgenders, based in Tirana stated, “We look forward to the support of all parties and to the passage of the non-discrimination law soon after the next session of parliament beginsƔhis is not only a step to be taken for European integration, but primarily for the emancipation of Albanian society, and we are proud that our country is joining so many others in embracing equality and rejecting discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.”
In many ways, the move is seen as a step towards integration into the European Union which accepted the application of Albania to join the current 27 members; however, a decision upon accepting Albania’s formal candidate status application has not been reached yet, and this may be part of that process.
Albania must complete a rigorous number of reforms to its social and political fabric in order to qualify for admission, and that includes protections for minorities. If the application to join the EU is accepted, Albania will meet with European Union representatives in order to determine what areas need to be reformed in order to gain entry into the EU as a whole. This move is one of those steps intended to help get that application approved.
The move to legalize same-sex marriage in Albania was met with resistance from religious communities within as well as outside the country. The Vatican has been stern about this legislation, though no formal statements have been lodged (at least publicly). The religious communities see moves like this as undermining their moral authority within the society, and are vehemently opposed to them. While religions have made some headway in regaining the ground lost under Communism, Albanians are still largely directed towards the religious traditions as well as being more atheist and agnostic than being strongly religious.
Prime Minister Berisha’s move to legalize same-sex marriage has brought to light a very specific issue for most religious leaders in Europe, and that is the decline of their influence, and the tracking towards the more conservative in order to win people back to the fold. A recent move in Italy over abortion rights angered the Vatican. Italy recently legalized the abortion pill RU486 despite objections from the Vatican, threatening to excommunicate anyone who prescribes it. In recent years, organized religions have seen a decline of religion as important in the daily lives of most citizens and their ability to call upon their followers to vote in certain patterns has diminished.