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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Albania 'to approve gay marriage' | Albania 'to approve gay marriage' |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha has announced his party will propose a law legalising same-sex marriage. | Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha has announced his party will propose a law legalising same-sex marriage. |
| It is an unexpected move in a country that is still one of the most conservative in Europe and where homosexuality was illegal until 1995. | It is an unexpected move in a country that is still one of the most conservative in Europe and where homosexuality was illegal until 1995. |
| Mr Berisha acknowledged the proposed law might provoke debate but maintained that discrimination in modern Albania had to end. | Mr Berisha acknowledged the proposed law might provoke debate but maintained that discrimination in modern Albania had to end. |
| The bill was drawn up by a group of non-governmental organisations. | The bill was drawn up by a group of non-governmental organisations. |
| It has been accepted by Mr Berisha's Democratic Party and will now come before parliament in the autumn. | It has been accepted by Mr Berisha's Democratic Party and will now come before parliament in the autumn. |
| In a predominantly Muslim country with almost no open homosexual community, the announcement by a conservative PM has taken people by surprise. | In a predominantly Muslim country with almost no open homosexual community, the announcement by a conservative PM has taken people by surprise. |
| Goran Miletic, a Belgrade-based human rights lawyer, working partly on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues said it was an important step forward for the country. | Goran Miletic, a Belgrade-based human rights lawyer, working partly on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues said it was an important step forward for the country. |
| "(It is) encouraging for the LGBT community in Albania, bearing in mind that they are not visible comparing to some other Balkan states like Serbia, like Macedonia or Croatia." | "(It is) encouraging for the LGBT community in Albania, bearing in mind that they are not visible comparing to some other Balkan states like Serbia, like Macedonia or Croatia." |
| But he said he did not think the law would be passed easily in the face of immediate opposition from religious communities | But he said he did not think the law would be passed easily in the face of immediate opposition from religious communities |
| The reaction by Islamic and Catholic leaders has been vehement. | The reaction by Islamic and Catholic leaders has been vehement. |
| Under the isolationist rule of Enver Hoxha, Albania was officially an atheist state. | Under the isolationist rule of Enver Hoxha, Albania was officially an atheist state. |
| But since the fall of Communism almost two decades ago, religion has once again grown and its leaders' voices are influential. | But since the fall of Communism almost two decades ago, religion has once again grown and its leaders' voices are influential. |
| Albania, though, has set its sights firmly on the goal of European Union membership, and it seems this proposed law is aimed at showing Brussels a progressive new image. | Albania, though, has set its sights firmly on the goal of European Union membership, and it seems this proposed law is aimed at showing Brussels a progressive new image. |
| If it is passed in the autumn, it could move the country one step further on its European path. | If it is passed in the autumn, it could move the country one step further on its European path. |
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