Same-Sex Marriages and Adoption Legalised in Greece: The First Christian-Orthodox Country To Do So

18-02-2024

Laura Libertini

Human Rights and Europe Researcher, 

Global Human Rights Defence

On Friday 16th, 2024, same-sex marriages were legalised in Greece, which became the world’s first Christian Orthodox country to reach this important landmark. On Thursday, 176 MPs voted in favour of the proposed bill, 76 MPs voted against, and two abstained from voting while 46 were not present for the vote. The LBTQIA+ community is enthusiastic about this major milestone, which, after many years of struggle and protests, allows same-sex couples to marry in a civil ritual and to adopt children, even though it does not enable adoption through surrogate pregnancy.

The country is now divided in two halves, between those in favour of same-sex marriages and those whose beliefs are deeply rooted in the idea of the traditional family. Despite this break, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis reported that “same-sex marriage was a matter of equal rights” and that there should be no “second-class citizens” or “children of a lesser God.” At the same time,  immediately after the bill had passed, former premier Antonis Samaras stated that equal marriages were not considered as a human right and that this “dangerous” law should not have been introduced in the first place.

Sources and further readings:

 Kitsantonis, N. (February 15th, 2024). Greece Becomes First Orthodox Country to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage. The New York Times. Retrieved on February 18th, 2024, from https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/15/world/europe/greece-same-sex-marriage.html. 

Smith, H. (February 16th, 2024). Greece becomes first Orthodox Christian country to legalise same-sex marriage. The Guardian. Retrieved on February 18th, 2024, from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/15/greece-becomes-first-orthodox-christian-country-to-legalise-same-sex-mariage.