European court raps Poland on gay march ban

PARIS, May 3 (Reuters) Europe's top human rights court ruled today that Poland was guilty of discrimination for banning a gay rights march in Warsaw in 2005 when current President Lech Kaczynski was mayor of the city.

The European Court of Human Rights said comments from Kaczynski that ''propaganda about homosexuality'' was not the same as ''exercising one's freedom of assembly'' in a newspaper interview had influenced the city's decision to refuse permission for the march.

''The Court concluded that ... the mayor's opinions affected the decision-making process, and as a result, infringed on the applicants' right to freedom of assembly in a discriminatory manner,'' it said in a statement.

While the march went ahead, and was attended by about 3,000 people, the court said its organisers had taken a risk given the official ban in force at the time.

The judgement was welcomed by Zbigniew Holda, a law professor from Lublin's Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, who helped file the petition by the Foundation for Equality and five of its members who campaign on behalf of gays.

''This is a victory for Poland,'' he told TVN-24 television.

''Everyone has got the right to peaceful assembly regardless of whether anyone likes or supports the message being conveyed.'' Poland, which joined the European Union in 2004, has come under increasing fire recently from the Union's lawmakers, who singled it out in a resolution condemning homophobia in the 27-nation bloc.

The April resolution urged parliament leaders to order a fact-finding mission to Poland to establish whether homosexuals' rights are being violated in the predominantly Roman Catholic country.

REUTERS RS RAI2040