Ummid Assistant

Applications open for Manmohan scholarship at Cambridge

Opportunities for Indian students in US

Welcome Guest! You are here: Home » International

Hundreds of thousands take part in anti-gay marriage rally in Paris

Monday January 14, 2013 09:46:55 PM, IANS

Related articles

Hundreds of priests in Britain oppose same sex marriage bill

More than 1,000 priests in Britain have signed a letter voicing their concern about how same-sex marriages will threaten religious freedom and may even lead to Catholics being excluded from jobs. The Equal Marriage Bill, allowing couples of the same sex to marry, is due to be published  »

Paris: Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators, including Christians and Muslims, poured into Paris to protest against gay marriage laws that will come into force in June under plans drawn up by the French President Francois Hollande.

Police expect about 300,000 people to march on the Eiffel Tower from three points in the city, in what could be the largest demonstration in a decade.

 

Various counter-demonstrations were also planned, Le Monde reported. A massive police presence, bolstered by military and security forces, is to be deployed on the streets of the French capital. The marriage proposals would grant same-sex couples the right to adopt children, along with other legal entitlements.

 

Polls show about 50 percent of French voters support gay marriage, down from 65 percent in August, while less than half now support the granting of adoption rights to homosexuals.

But while the plans have proved nationally divisive, they have rallied the opposition, uniting disparate groups including Catholics, Muslims, Jews, far-rightists and even homosexuals in increasingly vocal opposition.

 

A coalition of the Catholic establishment, traditional families, conservatives and evangelicals has been mobilized to oppose the moves. The demonstrations caused major disruptions to transport and forced the closure of metro stations as protesters streamed into Paris by bus, car and especially reserved high-speed train.

 

"We want this draft law to be withdrawn," protest organizer Patricia Soullier told BFM-TV as she boarded a Paris-bound train in the southern city of Marseille.

The proposals formed part of Hollande's election manifesto, and are likely to be passed without difficulty by parliament. The president angered many with what was seen as a clumsy attempt to avoid public debate and slip the reform through parliament.

 

Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, head of the Catholic Church in France, rallied the opposition with a sermon in August. Muslim, Jewish, Protestant and Orthodox Christians joined him in speaking out.

The problems that children could face in same-sex households became a key issue, uniting the various groups opposed to the measure. Plans to allow lesbian couples access to artificial insemination, which is currently limited to heterosexual couples with fertility problems, have been dropped in face of the mounting pressure.

 

Organizers insist they are protesting in favour of traditional marriages, rather than against gays and lesbians.

 

"We are marriagophile, not homophobe," Frigide Barjot, a protest organiser and author of a book entitled Confessions of a Trendy Catholic, said. "I'm happy many Catholics will be mobilized, but this is not a church demonstration against the government," said Cardinal Vingt-Trois, who says he will go to meet the marchers, but will not join them.
 

Civitas, a far-right Catholic group whose protests have been openly homophobic, plans a rival march that will run parallel to the main columns.



 






 

Home | Top of the Page

Comments

Note: By posting your comments here you agree to the terms and conditions of www.ummid.com

Comments powered by DISQUS

i

I

More Headlines

India lodges strong protest at flag meeting

Swami Kamlananda jailed for hate speech

British men want mini-skirts, low cut tops banned in offices

Girl gang-raped, thrown out of vehicle in Bengal

India concerned at South Africa suspending buffalo meat imports

Dilip-Saira return after performing Umrah, want to do Haj together

Technology will change the face of education: BITS vice chancellor

Army chief against diluting AFSPA

Telangana state will soon be a reality, say ministers

European media: From India shining to India tarnished

 

Top Stories

It was a police action, not riot: Maharashtra legislator

Police fired with intention to kill, blame Dhule riot victims; allege the police of involving in looting and beating women

“If the government thinks that the police aggression was justified, it should announce that whenever and wherever in the country such a thing would happen, the police would act with  »

Dhule Riots: Now Dy Mayor, Muslim councilors threaten to resign

Upset by son's death in Dhule firing, Dy Tahsildar to resign from post

 

  Most Read

India lodges strong protest at flag meeting

Won’t remain passive when attacked, says Army chief

India Monday took a tough stance against Pakistan over the killing and mutilation of two of its soldiers with its army chief asserting that his forces  »

Swami Kamlananda jailed for hate speech

The president of Hindu Devalaya Parirakshana Samithi, a committee fighting for protection of Hindu temples, has been charged with promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, language and doing acts prejudicial to  »

Owaisi gets jail for 14 days, pulled up by judge

 

  News Pick

Dilip-Saira return after performing Umrah, want to do Haj together

Saira Banu is extremely joyous after performing Umrah in Saudi Arabia with her husband and Bollywood thespian Dilip Kumar and says now she wishes they get an opportunity to go for Haj  »

India concerned at South Africa suspending buffalo meat imports

India Monday voiced concern to South Africa at the suspension of frozen boneless buffalo meat imports from the country. Commerce Minister Anand Sharma told South African Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies,  »

European media: From India shining to India tarnished

The dire situation of Indian women is now under the spotlight in European media and daily incidents of violence are being reported with alacrity along with statistics and analyses to show India's disastrous record in ensuring women's rights.  »

Indian origin Canadian Muslim woman wins Queen Elizabeth Jubilee Medal

Volunteering for community help decades ago, a Canadian Muslim in Ontario’s city of Mississauga has  »

 

Picture of the Day

President Pranab Mukherjee, Union Minister for Communications and Information Technology Kapil Sibal, Union Minister for Minority Affairs K. Rahman Khan and other dignitaries at the release of the Commemorative Postage Stamp on Shaikhul Hind’s “Silk Letter Movement” & 60th Session of Shaikhul Hind’s Silk Letter Movement Centenary, in New Delhi on January 11, 2013.

 

Recommend the story to your friends

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

RSS  |  Contact us

 

| Quick links

News

 

Subscribe to

Ummid Assistant

 

National

Science & Technology

RSS

Scholarships

About us

International

Health

Twitter

Government Schemes

Feedback

Regional

History

Facebook

Education

Register

Politics

Opinion

Newsletter

Contact us

Business

The Funny Side

Education & Career

     

 

 

Ummid.com: Disclaimer | Terms of Use | Advertise with us | Link Exchange

Ummid.com is part of the Awaz Multimedia & Publications providing World News, News Analysis and Feature Articles on Education, Health. Politics, Technology, Sports, Entertainment, Industry etc. The articles or the views displayed on this website are for public information and in no way describe the editorial views. The users are entitled to use this site subject to the terms and conditions mentioned.

© 2012 Awaz Multimedia & Publications. All rights reserved.