The court ordered the city hall to allow a gay parade in the center of Vilnius

The Chief Administrative Court of Lithuania (GASL) ordered the city hall of Vilnius to allow the procession of representatives of the LGBT community and their supporters in the center of the Lithuanian capital next Saturday.

The court rejected the appeal of the city hall, in which the metropolitan leadership disputed the decisions of two lower courts that approved the gay action. The verdict of the GASL is no longer subject to appeal, the local DELFI portal reports.

GASL indicated that the right to peaceful meetings approved by the Lithuanian Constitution is “fundamental in a democratic society, therefore it can only be limited by law and only in the case when it is necessary to protect the state or society, public order, health or morality of citizens or the rights and freedom of other people.”

The desire of the city authorities to transfer the gay of a gay to the Street of Opes remote from the center did not respond to these conditions, the country's highest administrative court counted.

The mayor of Vilnius Arthurus Zuokas, actively resisting the gay parade in the city center, now promises not to repair obstacles. “The court decided that he has such a right. Our administrative commission is sitting tomorrow. Without a doubt, having received a court decision, she will be obliged to issue a permit for this procession at their request in full. I have no doubt that the commission will fulfill the court decision,” the portal of the mayor quotes.

The city authorities do not plan to take additional security measures on Gediminas Avenue, the police should do this, Zuokas added. “Without a doubt, the police should assess the risk and threats and ensure security,” the mayor noted.

The leader of the Lithuanian League of Gay, Vladimir Simonko, was directly glowing with joy after the announcement of the Verdict Gasl, notes Delfi . According to the gay activist, the police notes for their part that it can ensure security and indicates that Vilnius is one of the safest cities in Europe.

The beginning of the procession on Gediminas Avenue is scheduled for 13 hours on July 27. According to the plan, the event will last until 16 hours. The ambassadors of European countries, Lithuanian and European politicians, representatives of non -governmental organizations intend to express support to its participants, the newspaper writes.

The organizers of the promotion in Vilnius indicate that such processions conducted in many Western countries are important in terms of attracting attention to discrimination of sex minorities and encouraging equality, Interfax notes.

Their opponents in Lithuania call such events "propaganda of homosexuality" in places where children can see it, prohibited by law and punishing administrative responsibility - as in Russia .

Meanwhile, back in 2009, in this former Soviet Republic, parliamentary deputies seriously raised the question of the return of criminal liability for sodistry - as it was during the USSR.

A year later, the first procession of sex minorities took place in Vilnius: then several hundred LGBT activists passed along the street.