Lithuania’s first gay pride march attracts protests
Opponents of Lithuania’s first gay pride parade threw smoke bombs and tried to break through a barrier Saturday but were stopped by police firing tear gas, reports The Associated Press.
Later, protesters threw rocks and street signs at security forces, and two Lithuanian lawmakers were detained after trying to climb the barrier.
About 400 people took part in the two-hour march — dubbed “For Equality” — in a sealed-off area in downtown Vilnius. Holding large rainbow flags and dancing to music blaring from loudspeakers, they walked along a road near the city’s Neris river.
Participants included many foreigners, diplomats and members of the European Parliament.
It was the first gay pride event in Lithuania, a largely Catholic nation of 3.4 million people in northern Europe, that acquired independence from the Soviet Union two decades ago.
