Euro Parliament accepts petition on Poland’s discrimination against gays
The European Parliament Committee on Petitions has accepted a petition submitted by a Polish LGBT rights group on the discriminatory practices of registry offices.
The Campaign Against Homophobia (KPH) said the Polish Registry Office has been known to refuse to issue certificates of marital status for gays and lesbians who would like to enter into a same-sex union abroad.
Certificates are required to enter into a union in most EU countries.
The EP Committee decided that the issues tackled in the petition fall under the jurisprudence of the European Union.
According to a letter from the Committee, an official procedure has begun to investigate the complaint which includes a request of the European Commission to explain what has been done regarding the issues raised in the petition.
The Committee also said that the issue should be dealt with by the EP’s Intergroup for LGBT Rights.
KPH made the European Parliament aware of the problems Polish citizens have been facing when attempting to enter into a same-sex union with a citizen of another EU country.
According to KPH the Registry violates the basic human right to form a family which is afforded to Polish gays and lesbians and conflicts with the EU principle of freedom of movement.
