From: Alice Taylor
NGO Calls for Same Sex Marriage and Adoption in Albania

NGO The Pink Embassy has formally requested that LGBTI people in Albania be able to legally adopt children and get married.

Regarding some changes and improvements, the Ministry of Justice made recently to the adoption law and the Family Code, the NGO have requested that further changes be made to eliminate “open discrimination against LGBTI persons.”

Despite domestic demands and international pressure for Albanian to legalise same-sex marriage and adoption by same-sex individuals, there has been no progress or apparent will to change. PINK Embassy says in a statement sent to Exit, that open discrimination continues in the country including excluding couples from legal recognition, the right to have a family or to adopt.

26 EU states recognise equality in marriage and cohabitation, 14 recognise the same-sex civil marriage, 12 recognise civil cohabitation.

The Embassy said that “social prejudices about marriage in Albania are deeply ingrained in the few remaining laws that are openly discriminatory against LGBTI people.

The Ministry of Justice has been holding public consultations on the two laws regarding the family and adoption. During the last meeting, the PINK Embassy formally presented its request for the elimination of all legal barriers that the Albanian law has against LGBTI persons.