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Lithuania parliament approves child censorship bill

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] The Lithuanian parliament on Tuesday approved a bill that would prohibit children from being exposed to information on a number of topics, including homosexuality. The parliament overrode the veto of former president Valdas Adamkus, who had rejected an earlier vote by the parliament to pass the bill. Under Lithuanian law, current president Dalia Grybauskaite cannot veto the bill again, and must sign it within three days. Grybauskaite has said she will reluctantly sign the bill. News of the bill's passage brought swift comment from rights groups across Europe. Amnesty International UK warned that the bill could, "institutionalise homophobia" and "further the stigmatisation of and prejudice against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people." Worldwide, gay rights and the legal status of same-sex relationships are constantly evolving. In April, an appeals court in Senegal, where homosexual acts are a crime, overturned the sodomy conviction of nine aid workers. In November 2008, the parliament of Burundi criminalized homosexuality, and the Supreme Court of Nepal approved same-sex marriages. In October, the Portuguese parliament voted overwhelmingly against proposals to legalize same-sex marriage.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on July 15, 2009 (boomark / email).