San Francisco Frontiers - Kyiv residents protest 'dangerous' civil code, call for LGBTQ rights

The legislation is designed to bring Ukraine closer to European law as part of Kyiv's bid to join the European Union, but protesters and watchdog organisations said it contradicts the EU's fundamental rights.

Protesters chanted: "Protest, make love and don't give away your rights!" as they gathered in a park near the parliament for the demonstration, which began with a minute of silence for soldiers killed in the Russian invasion.

"This civil code is a disgrace, it should be withdrawn or stopped," said Viktor Pylypenko, a veteran and LGBTQ activist.

The legislation, passed in its first reading, is yet to be adopted but, in its current form, it would uphold Ukraine's ban on same-sex marriage.

A previous version of the legislation triggered outrage by allowing for marriage from the age of 14.

The clause was later removed, but parliamentary speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk said changing the constitutional definition of marriage would "undoubtedly generate disputes... that is why we left this regulation as it is."

Over 70 percent of Ukrainians believe LGBTQ people should have the same rights as everyone else, and 35 percent oppose same-sex partnerships, according to a 2024 survey from the Kyiv Institute of Sociology.

Protesters believed the issue of same-sex partnership could not wait for when the war ends.

"We have families, but our families are not recognised, which creates enormous problems... After the death or severe injury of LGBT defenders, these issues become especially critical," Pylypenko said.

- 'Good morals' -

The civil code would also allow judges to base some rulings on vaguely defined "good morals" -- a provision Human Rights Watch warned would be "opening the door to arbitrary interpretation".

Anna Zakharenkova, short-shaved hair and sunglasses on her head, held up a sign ironically asking if her slogan was in line with the so-called good morals.

"My fate, your fate, will depend on a judge deciding whether I am sufficiently following these good morals," she said, "this leads to enormous risks."

"I don't want my country to slowly turn into Russia."

The fight against Russia's invasion of Ukraine is often portrayed as an existential struggle to join European liberal values, against Russia's ultra-conservative turn.

- 'Rebellious country' -

Ukraine has accelerated efforts to join the European Union and carried out wide-ranging reforms.

But lawmaker Inna Sovsun said the code would be breaking many of the commitments that Ukraine has made.

"They're completely ignoring our commitments within the European integration. And that is bad not just for the Ukrainian society, but also in terms of the broader picture of how are we actually moving towards European integration."

The Minister for EU Integration, Taras Kachka, said a vast majority of the new civil code posed no issues but acknowledged "very serious questions regarding family law."

"We have very clear obligations to ensure there is no discrimination," he said in Kyiv last week, adding: "for me, this is an important issue."

Demonstrators vowed to keep on protesting.

Yulia Myroshnychenko had come in a white wedding dress, just like her girlfriend Yevgenia Skobielieva.

"I hope deputies will remember where they live. It seems they have forgotten that Ukraine is a rebellious country," 22-year-old Myroshnychenko said.

"We come out to protest, we care, we are not Russia, and we fight," she said.

D.Brown--SFF