Despite Greece being found guilty by the European Court of Human Rights regarding the refusal to recognize same-sex civil partnerships, the government has decided to delay making the necessary legislative changes after a number of New Democracy MPs reacted.
The Minister of Justice Athanasiou met with PASOK MPs on Tuesday in order to discuss the possibility of including the same-sex civil partnership provisions in the upcoming anti-racism tax bill. However the fierce reactions and objections of New Democracy MPs at the prospect resulted in the discussions being stalled.
Mr. Athanasiou was in touch with the Prime Minister, in order to avoid disrupting the stability of the coalition government, similarly to when the first attempt to submit an anti-racism draft bill in April. The Ministry of Justice claims that there will be a bill allowing same-sex couples to establish a civil partnership according to the ECHR ruling, however no time frame has been set.
The Metropolitan Bishop of Piraeus Seraphim issued a lengthy homophobic statement, threatening to excommunicate any MPs who will vote in favor of a bill allowing same-sex civil partnerships and reported that he was to call an immediate convocation of Bishops.
