| Mayor's statement on Latvian Gay Pride ban |
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| Community - Gay Rights | ||||||||||
| Monday, 11 September 2006 20:06 | ||||||||||
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1 Jul 06
 The Mayor of London Ken Livingstone said today: 'The decision by the City Council of Riga, capital of Latvia, to ban the city's gay pride march is an unacceptable attack on universal human rights. The grounds given by the council for this ban, unspecified threats of violence by extremist groups are spurious. If extremist groups threaten freedom of assembly in the capital of Latvia the authorities should deal with the extremists, not ban a legitimate peaceful parade by the lesbian and gay communities. 'This ban appears to be based upon bigotry and discrimination against the lesbian and gay citizens of Latvia. I deplore the fact that the ban has apparently been supported by leading members of the Latvian government such as the Prime Minister and the role of Christian leaders in campaigning against the Gay Pride Parade. 'The European Parliament has made clear that lesbian and gay people should be treated with 'respect, dignity and protection'. Latvia is clearly not doing this. I urge Riga City Council to reverse this ban and ensure this march can take place without impediment.'
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