A few thousand participants marched through the streets of Belgrade last Saturday, a city that in 2022 hosted a contentious EuroPride event. Back then, tensions were high after the Serbian Orthodox Church launched an anti-Pride campaign. Despite the opposition to LGBT+ emancipation in the country, this year’s Pride was the largest ever, according to the organisers.
The march paused in front of the parliament for a while to make it clear to politicians that LGBT+ people want rights for same-sex couples and for transgender individuals. Serbia’s Minister of European Integration, Tanja Miscevic, told Serbian media that the government is "discussing" possible legislation for same-sex couples, although she added that this issue is not within her portfolio. Notably, when the march reached the parliament building, a rainbow flag was displayed from a window as a show of support. It is unclear who waved the flag.
Serbian LGBT+ individuals have few legal rights, and homophobia remains widespread in the country. Although the situation for LGBT+ people is slowly improving, it seems that progress has stalled in recent years. The country's former prime minister, Ana Brnabic, is a lesbian, but despite her sexual orientation, she appeared to side with conservative Serbians during the EuroPride controversy.
