During the Kyiv Pride in June 2024, one message appeared again and again among the marchers, flying off their protest signs and lips: “#9103! It is long overdue,” “Legalise love #9103,” “9103 YES to civil partnerships.”
At the first opportunity to march for LGBTQ+ rights since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the participants of Kyiv Pride 2024, civilians and soldiers alike, responded to the new political reality in Ukraine: in March 2023, a bill that aims to legalise both opposite-sex and same-sex civil unions was introduced to the Ukrainian Parliament.
Noticing that Ukraine, unlike its Eastern European neighbours such as Poland, Romania, Belarus, and Moldova, is in the active process of negotiating legislative changes that could significantly improve access to family rights for LGBTQ+ persons, Bang Bang decided to track the way this bill has come about.
With the help of a member of the Union of the LGBT Military, an MP from the Ukrainian Parliament, and an LGBTQ+ activist from Moldova, we answer why this type of legislation is crucial, what it means for a country in the process of European integration, and what Moldova, sharing similar political aspirations of EU accession, can learn from Ukraine’s example.
Petition in support of same-sex marriage
In 2022, half a year into the Russian full-scale invasion, an online petition was submitted to the President of Ukraine, demanding the legalisation of same-sex marriage. Its description was straight to the point: “At this time, every day can be the last. Let people of the same sex have the opportunity to start a family and have an official document that confirms it. They are in need of the same rights as traditional couples.”
Once the petition gained the required 25,000 signatures, it was considered by President Zelensky. In his response, Zelensky noted that, to legalize same-sex marriage in Ukraine, it is necessary to change the definition of marriage as “based on the free consent of a woman and a man” in Article 51 of the Constitution. Since constitutional amendments are impossible under martial law, Zelensky added, the Ukrainian government is examining another option: the legalisation of civil partnerships.
On its way to adoption: bill №9103
When the petition in support of same-sex marriage was being discussed by the Ukrainian public, the drafting of a bill, similar in spirit, was already underway. Bill №9103, “On the Institution of Civil Partnerships,” was introduced to the Ukrainian parliament in March 2023 after 9 months of preparation. It was initiated by lawmaker Inna Sovsun, representing the Holos party, and endorsed by 17 other MPs from the Holos and Servant of the People parties.
According to the bill’s provisions, it aims to legalise both opposite-sex and same-sex civil partnerships which would equate the status of a partner to that of the closest family member. This would grant civil partners the same legal rights as in marriage, with the exception of child adoption.
Although the bill has not yet been passed in the relevant committee, without whose approval it cannot make it to the parliamentary floor, it has received positive assessment from at least 5 other committees. The latest committee to back the bill, in August 2024, was the Committee on Public Health, Medical Assistance, and Health Insurance, which recommended it for adoption in the first reading in parliament.
A number of Ukrainian ministries expressed their moderate endorsement of the bill: the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Social Policy. Despite initial resistance and claims that the number of LGBTQ+ soldiers in the Ukrainian Armed Forces cannot be verified, the Ministry of Defence changed its position and, in October 2023, declared its support for the bill.
LGBTQ+ rights in the context of war
In his annual report from March 2022, the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, criticised the absence of legal recognition of same-sex relationships in Ukraine. Framing the need to legalise same-sex civil partnerships as an “acute” issue, Lubinets highlighted how the Russian full-scale invasion contributed to the urgency of this legislative measure: “In the conditions of war, representatives of the LGBTQ+ community serve in the Armed Forces, the Territorial Defence Forces, etc., and do not have the same opportunities as heterosexual persons to legalise their relationships and acquire mutual rights and obligations.”
Anna, a pansexual woman serving in the 47th Mechanised Brigade of the Ukrainian Army as an evacuation medic, confirms the report’s conclusions: “Why is this bill really important to us now? Because marriage and civil partnership options give you the opportunity to be responsible for another person’s life in extreme situations.”
In a conversation with Bang Bang, Anna does not hesitate to list the rights that same-sex couples could obtain with the legal recognition of their relationship: the right to decide on the scope of medical intervention if one’s partner gets severely injured, the right to access the intensive medical care unit as the partner’s closest relative, and, as tragic as it may be, the right to identify and claim the body of your loved one.
“For the LGBTQ+ people, especially those who serve in the army, this bill is essential,” Anna repeats emphatically. Taking into account the initiative’s advantages as well as its limitations, she later concedes: “I would say that same-sex marriages are even more essential, but, right now, there is no public discussion about those.”
Queer visibility and public opinion about the bill
According to a recent all-Ukrainian public opinion survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology in May-June 2024, 70% of Ukrainians believe that the LGBTQ+ community should have equal rights with the rest of Ukraine’s citizens. As to the legalisation of same-sex civil partnerships, however, the percentage of respondents ready to support the measure drops to 28%, whereas 25% report having no preference, the survey shows.
When asked about any possible changes in public attitude in Ukraine towards the LGBTQ+ community at the backdrop of the Russian invasion, Anna appears sceptical. Although some developments at the governmental level, such as the introduction of the bill №9103, seem to enjoy more support because of LGBTQ+ persons contributing to the military effort, there has been no dramatic shift towards tolerance in Ukrainian society as a whole, she claims.
Still, just like the activists and soldiers who chose to demonstrate openly during this year’s Kyiv Pride, Anna believes in the potential of queer visibility to combat ignorance, especially in historically conservative institutions such as the army. She explains, “Being a part of the army is a great experience because I have the opportunity to communicate closely with people whom I would barely meet in real life — people who come from a social stratum that is not really concerned with European values. My decision to join the Ukrainian Armed Forces was, among other things, connected to the fact that I wanted to be that one LGBTQ+ person those people are going to know and see.”
“When I try to talk to them, sometimes they change their point of view,” Anna recalls.
Pressure from the church: opposition to the bill
In June 2024, in a commentary to the BBC, a member of the Committee on Legal Policy responsible for analysing the quality of the bill №9103 and either recommending it for inclusion in the parliamentary agenda or rejecting it, revealed that the majority of the committee opposes the legislation.
Among the committee members’ primary concerns, the BBC’s source added, is the objection of the church and its followers to the bill. “You understand very well that this law is of a socially resonant nature. Do we need some kind of public disturbance now?” Ivan Kalaur, an MP from the Servant of the People party, addressed his colleagues during a committee hearing this June.
Meanwhile, the official statement of the Synod of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in which the Synod opposes the bill №9103, makes more references to the institution of marriage than to that of the civil partnership. When it does address same-sex civil unions, it describes them as an institution “contrary to the natural law established by God” that “poses a threat to public morality, in particular to the moral and psychological health of children.”
The Synod does not elaborate further on its allegations, claiming to have instructed the head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine to “send relevant letters” to the Ukrainian parliament, the President, and the government.
The EU approach: LGBTQ+ rights are human rights
“I have always believed in equal rights for the LGBTQ+ community,” comments lawmaker Inna Sovsun on her initiative. “It is just that I decided now is the time to draft the bill because I saw how vulnerable LGBTQ+ soldiers are.”
In response to Bang Bang’s question about the false narratives surrounding the subject of same-sex partnerships and how to counter them, Inna reiterates that LGBTQ+ rights are a part of the broader human rights framework: “Yes, this falls under the human rights agenda. It is not a promotion of, as Putin phrased this, «gay propaganda». It is not to «make people gay». Same-sex partnerships have to be legalised because there are people who are gay, and they, just like every other citizen, need protection. That is the EU approach, and that is how my team and I are framing it as well.”
Given that Ukraine, like Moldova, is in the process of accession negotiations with the EU, Inna makes sure to explain how legalising same-sex partnerships is consistent with the aim of EU integration. “There are documents that state what sort of legislation Ukraine must develop and adopt in order to meet the criteria for EU membership. The civil partnership bill is not part of the required list of bills.” “However, in order to become part of the EU we have to meet the Copenhagen criteria,” Inna adds.
The Copenhagen criteria are a set of formal standards that determine whether a country is eligible to join the EU. By noting that the level of adherence to human rights, as outlined in the Copenhagen criteria, is measured by how well Ukraine implements Council of Europe regulations and the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), Inna emphasises that the lack of legal recognition for same-sex couples in Ukraine constitutes a violation of the European Convention of Human Rights.
She cites the recent ruling of the ECHR in Maymulakhin and Markiv v. Ukraine which declared that the Ukrainian state violated Andriy Maymulakhin’s and Andriy Markiv’s right to privacy and non-discrimination by refusing to recognise them as legal partners in 2014. “It is a two-tier approach: adherence to the Copenhagen criteria is measured by the Council of Europe, and the Council of Europe has already stated that Ukraine is in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights because of this court decision.”
“This is something most people, politicians, and ministers in Ukraine still do not realise: we will never fully meet the Copenhagen criteria without doing something about the civil partnership legislation,” stresses Inna.
Ukraine’s bill №9103: an example for Moldova
When asked about the potential impact of the legalisation of same-sex civil partnerships in Ukraine on its neighbouring states, especially those that share Ukraine’s aspiration to join the EU, Inna responds: “I would say that when the Ukrainian parliament passes this bill, it will become clear that this is part of the «homework», or something that a country has to do to become an EU member state. And since, as of now, Moldova, unlike Georgia, is clearly moving along the European integration path, it will signal to Moldova that this is legislation that it also has to implement.”
“It is up to you to judge how that will be perceived internally, because I am not familiar with Moldova’s societal context. Still, the passage of this bill in Ukraine will send a strong message that legislating on human rights is part of the EU integration package in general,” underlines Inna.
The rights of same-sex couples to marriage or a legally recognized union are not respected by Moldova’s authorities, tells Bang Bang LGBTQ+ activist Leo Zbanke: “At the moment, 5 same-sex couples have cases regarding the lack of equal marriage legislation in Moldova pending in the Moldovan court, and if they do not turn out positive, we will seek justice at the European Court of Human Rights. Unfortunately, the process is lengthy. We have all received first rejection and are now appealing. We understand that due to the timing, it is unlikely that a decision will be pronounced this year, especially with the upcoming elections.”
In order for that to change and for Moldova to have a legislation similar to the Ukrainian bill №9103 introduced to parliament, it is crucial to actively combat disinformation on human rights issues and educate the public on a national scale, says Leo. “It is essential to explain that my right to marry the person I love does not infringe on anyone else’s rights. In a democratic society, one group of people should not determine the fate and rights of another,” he affirms.
“Having laws is important, but they can easily be rewritten or overturned,” adds Leo, mindful of the ideological polarisation of Moldova’s political scene. “What we can all do as a society is work to change attitudes towards one another and recognize how the pro-Russian political parties are trying to divide us with disinformation and hateful rhetoric,” the activist concludes.
