Greeks protest against same-sex marriage, adoption reform

Thousands of individuals congregated in Athens on Sunday to protest against the legalization of same-sex marriage and adoption in Greece, as parliament prepares to deliberate on the matter in the upcoming week.

According to police estimates, approximately 4,000 people heeded the call initiated by Orthodox religious factions. They assembled at central Syntagma Square, proudly waving Greek flags while displaying crosses and banners denouncing same-sex parenthood.

The crowd, which included robed priests and supporters of the far-right Niki party led by Dimitris Natsios, fervently chanted, "Hands off the children," echoing their staunch opposition to the proposed reforms.

Grigorios Grigorakis, a 57-year-old from Florina in northern Greece, arrived clutching an icon of the Virgin Mary, asserting that the reform deviates from the notion of traditional families. He emphasized, "Christ and the Gospel assert that a family consists of a man, a woman, and children," in an interview with AFP.

The Orthodox Church of Greece, closely aligned with numerous government MPs, vehemently opposes the reform, contending that it exposes children to an "environment of confusion."

Protester Efrosini, an Athens pensioner, highlighted that same-sex couples already possess rights under a civil union reform enacted in 2015.

Even Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, a proponent of the bill, has emphasized that the changes would primarily benefit "a few children and couples."

The bill is poised to create division within Mitsotakis' conservative New Democracy party, with a substantial number of its 158 lawmakers likely to oppose or abstain from voting. Nonetheless, it is anticipated to secure passage with the backing of the main opposition Syriza party, led by Stefanos Kasselakis, who is openly gay, along with the socialist Pasok party and other minor political factions.

Presently, guardian rights for same-sex couples are only granted to a child's biological parent, leaving their partners in legal uncertainty. Mitsotakis has affirmed that surrogacy will remain prohibited for same-sex couples.

Although opinion polls indicate that a majority of Greeks endorse same-sex marriage, there is widespread opposition to surrogacy.