Romania Decriminalizes Gay Relationships
The Advocate,
July 10, 2001
The Romanian government Monday adopted a decree decriminalizing gay
relationships between consenting adults, Agence France-Presse reports. The
decree nullifies a law currently on the books that allows jail terms up to
five years for homosexual relations "occurring in public or which provoke
a public scandal." In the new version, the law punishes sexual relations
with a minor "of the same or the opposite sex" as well as rape,
whatever the sex of the victim. The Romanian government made the move as part
of its efforts to be accepted into the European Union. The EU and the Council
of Europe have strongly criticized the law providing jail terms for gays,
accusing the Romanian government of breaching human rights agreements on the
issue.
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