LGBT+ Serbian Activists Don’t Wants Their Openly Gay PM To Attend Pride

Serbia’s openly gay Prime Minister has been asked not to attend the country’s Pride parade this year by LGBT+ activists, the BBC reports.

Activists have accused Prime Minister Ana Brnabic of not doing anything to further gay rights in the country and have started a “Say No” campaign to prevent any politician from attending the parade.

Despite being the first openly gay person to hold the position, Brnabic has not made LGBT+ issues apart of her agenda. She told last year’s pride parade that LGBT+ problems would only be addressed once they had tackled more important issues, such as inflation, pensions and the standard of living.

Predrag Azdejkovic, Head of Serbia’s Gay Lesbian Info Centre, has said making such a statement is “scandalous.”

The country has a volatile history with gay rights, same-sex marriage is still illegal and 90 percent of the country believes LGBT+ people are not suitable to adopt children. Serbia has been ranked 28th out of 49 observed European countries in terms of LGBT+ rights in 2016 by the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA). The Pride march in 2010 ended in violence, with 100 people being injured and pride being banned until 2014.